I’m owning that decision. I feel a great sense of accomplishment for all of my hard work and for my acceptance into the programs–that truly is a large part of the battle. I especially feel so much gratitude for those who have encouraged me along the way, and put in a lot of support and hard work on my behalf. Unfortunately, there is no exciting “Facebook life event” for “got into grad school and decided not to go,” and this is hard for some people, who know how much I put into it, and who know my potential, to understand. Life is full of choices. Life is full of opportunities. The fact that you can do something doesn’t mean that you need to. And the fact that you can’t do something (yet) doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t. **Nothing is taken away, only added upon. There is so much I will do in my life. There is so much education, in many forms, in my future. I am fairly certain grad school will be a part of that, if not once, then twice. I love life, in all its contented, beautiful, untidy and sometimes poignantly painful sophistication. Most of all I love the strong, inspiring women and men in my life–that is you–who make it all truly golden.
