Graduation speeches and careers...

I graduated with an MFA in Writing on May 18th, and I am so excited to have achieved this milestone.  Several years ago, a graduate degree was a dream I never thought I would achieve.  I never even considered the possibility that I could do it. It was a "wouldn't it be nice, but it's too much work/money/time" type of idea.  Then some big, personal stuff happened (which I won't go into here, except to say that something really bad happened in my son's life, and by extension in my life).  I suddenly realized that dreams will remain dreams if you don't TRY.  Yes, you may fail, but what if....

What if you SUCCEED?  That "what if..." is the question we all need to ask when we are too afraid, too tired, too poor, too whatever to TRY.  Your dream may be hard to achieve.  You may fail.  You may spend a ton of money that could have gone into something else.  But...WHAT IF YOU SUCCEED?  

In the past two years, I've managed to achieve several goals, some larger than others:

• Moving out of my mom's house (although I am grateful for all of her help over the years, and even today).
• Moving to New York City (well, at least very nearby).
• Have my writing and art published.  (click HERE to see what, and where).
• Continue to homeschool my son.
• Pay down some debt.
• Get hired to teach at the college level (I start in June!).
• And lots more...

With that in mind, I want to share with you some speeches and talks that I find inspirational...

Adam Savage at Sarah Lawrence College, May 2012

Neil Gaiman at the University of the Arts, May 2012

   Elizabeth Gilbert's TED Talk