Friday, February 10, 2006

My Master

I didn't include my wife and children in Mom's Cancer (except for sneaking them into one panel!) and I don't write much about them here. That's a deliberate Wall of Privacy I maintain, partly because I thought it'd be a bad idea to exploit and alienate my entire family. Especially the part I live with.

It's my rule...so I can break it if I want.

I could hardly be happier or more proud that my wife just earned her Master of Public Administration degree from a nearby state university. This isn't one of those Mickey Mouse masters that gives you 40 units for "life experience" and a hearty handshake for showing up to class with your checkbook open. It's the real deal. She attended night classes for five years while working 50-plus-hour weeks the whole time. She dedicated hours on weekends to study groups that she organized herself. Her studies culminated in a grinding two-day comprehensive exam covering every class she'd had (how could she remember material she learned five years ago? I don't remember what I did last month!) that she passed with aplomb. I've seen a lot of people work hard for academic accomplishments, including PhDs, but don't think I've ever seen anyone work with more determination than she did.

So I'm impressed. Congratulations, Sweetie! You earned it like I've never seen anybody earn anything else.

1 comment:

ronnie said...

Congratulations to your wife! It sounds like she thoroughly deserves every benefit and accolade that comes with having those letters after her name - but I bet the pride she, you and her daughters take in her achievement is the best reward of all.

ronnie