Maybe it's all the quarantine time. Maybe it's because every semester, there is someone dragging their feet on a project, or not following the rules that, hello, are the same for all of us. You are not the only one with life struggles, bad days, having to figure out how to roll with all the changes you are experiencing. Yep, I think that is it, I'm really tired of the excuses. This is a difficult time - for everyone. But you know what?! My parents raised 5 kids and went through a couple of wars - they got things done anyway. I worked most of my adult life in a career that became obsolete. I chose not to cry foul and bury my head in my arms. I chose to return to school and pursue a new career in a field that I am passionate about. Was it tough...Is it tough? You better believe it. My daughter had high-functioning dyslexia - she went through tutoring and chose NEVER to take "extra time" on a test because - in her words - "I'm not going to get extra time in life, in a job, mom." She is one of the hardest working, hugest achievers I know, and I respect her more than any other person I know - along with my husband, my life partner. Was it easy, NO, but that's why not everyone will do it. That's what makes it WORTHWHILE, WORTH DOING. Dr. Stevenson helps others climb the ladder when it gets so hard they think they cannot make it. She encourages them, but she does not tell them it is supposed to be easy. That is helping them fail when we do. Is this quarantine hard? Of course it is. But that is what life is ...changes, readjustments, flexing, bending, but not breaking. If you cannot get that now, what will happen when you're grown and your parents are gone?

No one promised it would be easy. Stop blaming everyone.... your parents, God (He promised to be there for you, if you even believe in Him, not that it would be all roses), your professors...and the list goes on. The toughest time of my life was working 50 hours a week and staying up until 1-2 in the morning studying for tests, and getting up at 6 a.m. and doing it all again - for 2 years! Now I am almost done, and I am not sure if I will land the editing/copyediting job I really want but one thing I know with complete clarity is I like the person staring back at me in the mirror because I know she can survive and that she does not stay down when she is hit with a challenge. That's a really good feeling. I also know that God is there with me every step of the way and because He is, I am able to have joy in all circumstances. It is not because it is always easy, it is because I believe and cling to a power people who DOUBT Him, and most everything else in life, know nothing about.

Stop whining, stop making excuses, reach out and take hold of a power that is there, and run for the finish line. It is the only life worth living, and it is one that is filled with triumph! It is the life that all the great winners in history know of. The ones you hear about did not get where they are because life was easy - they got there because they got up more times than they stayed down, and they kept doing that until they WON! That is what makes the difference. That is what fighting and winning looks like. Stop taking extra time on assignments. Start getting it done early because YOU CAN!!! Believe in yourself and believe in a higher power you don't understand because you never will, no more than you understand why this virus happened. It is just part of life. Being an overcomer is a part of life too if you choose it! "Go, Fight, Win!" (Edna Mose, The Incredibles).