I am a happy lady. Was I always? No way!
I was a serious kid. School and libraries were my comfort zones. Home was where I was an unwanted child. The earliest words I heard were that my mother tried to abort me. And then to have another girl? I was one of 5 with one brother. But I forgave her, in time. She was mentally ill most of my childhood and I became her handmaiden. My father made up for the deficit of love for me. My grandmother who helped out became my role model for my two sons and daughter and my four granddaughters. One word of wisdom: You don't grow up normal without love. And another: You don't succeed without commendation.
What I couldn't do in those years was go to college. Those were Depression years and the $8.00 I earned made a contribution to food on the table. I had started evening classes at 17, in three years accumulated one year's credits and then married a great guy who never negated my desire to go back to college. With three children, and holding down to a school secretarial position, I picked up my attendance at evening classes and eventually- ten years later, graduated Cum Laude. You couldn't stop me then. I went on to attain two Masters Degrees in Counseling and in Language Arts. That led to teaching. I was on my way to self-fulfillment...
