I Changed My Mind

It took me six years to get through nursing school. I started at one school and then changed to another. I worked full-time while I was pregnant with our first daughter but then changed my mind and quit my job after giving birth. I graduated nursing school as class president and then ten days later, I gave birth to our second daughter. That changed my world. When it was time to find a job as a nurse, my husband could sense something wasn't right. I was struggling to imagine leaving my babies all day and juggling work and this new role of mom I fell in love with. I didn't dare share this with him since he financially put me through school and took care of our daughter while I was in class. The sacrifices he made and the time I put into getting this degree couldn't be just "thrown away". But he knew. He said those magic words I will never forget. The words I didn't know needed to hear. Those words changed the course of my life. "If you don't want to work, don't work." I felt the load I was carrying fall off and I could breathe again. So I changed my mind about working as a nurse. And when I did, it felt like someone had recalibrated me and I was headed in the right direction. It felt good, right, and true. I didn't have to pretend that balancing home and career was easy. I didn't have to fake being at peace leaving my girls for long shifts. I didn't have to tell myself lies that it was going to be fine. When I heard those words, I felt free.

Coming to terms with our true North and making the adjustments to align our life in the right direction is what will bring us freedom, confidence, and fulfillment in life. And isn't that what we are all after? Freedom to be who we authentically are and gro