This is a long one, so bear with me =)
As I near my graduation date I find myself reflecting on the
journey that led me here. There are a
number of people I need to recognize for their help along this (sometimes
rocky) path.
Obviously Ryan is first and foremost on that list. Without him I wouldn’t have written a good
application letter, and frankly I probably wouldn’t have even made the deadline
for application. But beyond that he has
been there through every second of my craziness. Waiting until the last minute to write a
paper and vowing to never wait that long again.
Only to wait that long again and start the whole process over. He has listened to endless amounts of my
“venting” when someone did something irritating or stupid. He has held me when I cried, and celebrated
all my successes. I am always thankful
for him, and I will be so proud to become his wife.
Secondly is my mom.
She is the greatest woman I know.
I fight back tears every time I think of what she has done for me, what
she has sacrificed, and all the hard work she put in to make my childhood what
it was. Her life was not an easy
one. She and I have scaled more
mountains than I wish to count, but we made it to the top of every damn
one! She taught me what it means to be
strong and kind. She generously passed
along her wonderful sense of humor. She
spent my entire childhood encouraging me to do the best I could and letting me
know that she would be there every step of the way no matter what path I picked. She gave me room to grow even when it killed
her to see me leave. And she was always
there with open arms when I came back home.
One of the best things the social work program has given me
is a better understanding of my own life.
I am now able to look back on my journey and see what was happening and
what could have happened. My mom was and
is a rock in my life, unwavering in her love and support. There is nothing I can ever do to thank her
for what she has given me, but I spend every second doing what I can to make
her proud.
For every aspect of myself that I know came from my mom,
there is another one that certainly came from my dad. To my dad, I thank you for (unintentionally)
teaching me how to procrastinate like a pro.
For all the craziness I wouldn’t have it any other way! I thank you for always teaching me to look
beyond my little town. Without your
influence I would not have gone all the places I have. For your emphasis on common sense, to get me
through this big bad world. I thank you
for teaching me the value of doing nothing.
Sometime the soul, the body, and the brain just need a break. Most importantly, I want to thank you for
showing me what a good man is. Because
of your example I found the man of my dreams who is as good to me as you were. I thank you for being so very open-minded in
such a small town. You taught me to
listen to other people and accept them for who they are and I love you so very
much for that.
KCAVP. I learned so
much from my colleagues at this wonderful organization. Beth, thank you for taking me on as an
intern. I appreciate the opportunity you
gave me, as well as your continued support and concern. You were one of the best supervisors I have
had, and KCAVP will miss you when you are gone.
Thank you also for being such a crazy awesome knitter and for teaching
me to take it a little less seriously.
Afterall, if you mess up, you can just take the stitches out. Lindsey, thank you for keeping me company in
the front of the office. Thank you for
making me laugh, and making work just a little more interesting. And of course making up combo words that will
annoy Ryan! Santi, thank you for being
an amazing Zebra. I do not know what we,
as horses, would do without you. Thank
you for being a brilliant artist and for using you talent to create some of the
funniest cartoons I have ever seen!
Diane, thank you for being such a compassionate person. I learned a lot from you whether you knew you
were teaching or not.
To all of you thank you for introducing me to Vietnamese
food! Thank you for taking time to
celebrate new beginnings and birthdays of all staff! The connections I made with you all mean the
world to me. Thank you for being one of
the craziest and funniest (and possibly most inappropriate) offices ever! You are all wonderful!
When Ryan and I first moved to Kansas City we were in a
rough place. I was out of work, and we
had spent most of our money to make the move.
This meant I had a lot of time on my hands and not a lot to do with
myself. Starting at Hallmark really
saved my sanity. No one with a college
degree really wants to be forced back into retail, but I could not have asked
for a better place. My Hallmark ladies
mean the world to me. It is rare to find
a job where everyone gets along as well as we did.
Alicia, even though most of the new girls were terrified of
you, you quickly became one of my best friends.
Thank you for being my drinking buddy and shopping partner. For making slow Sundays a little bit better.
Graduate School has been a bumpy ride, I have complained
about more than I would like to admit.
But at the end I would not change anything. Each new day is a day to learn and grow. How displeased I may have been with this or
with that is moot now. I have learned so
much from so many great people. As of
May 4th I will be a Master Social Worker! That is amazing! I am proud of myself and of all the people
that have come with me and kept me company along this road.
I am so excited for the future! World, bring it on. I am ready for you! <3
