In April 2007, I felt all washed up.
I was standing in the Shoppers Food Warehouse in District Heights, Md., thinking, “I can’t take no more. I am so tired, so exhausted. I will be glad when this is over.”
It was high time for me professionally because I had completed an accelerated two-year program in 12 months, including writing a 60-plus page thesis about the leadership principles of public housing directors. I wasn’t getting much sleep, working a 35-hour-a-week job, spending every Saturday at the Spaulding Library and occasionally going to the Library of Congress on Sundays. So it felt great to have completed a rigorous, accelerated academic program. It restored my confidence and elevated my mind.
How do you balance mixed emotions in your life?
Doing that is like watching your grandchild say “Grandmother, I’ll be with you in a minute. Right now I’m online playing a game with my friends.” You’re happy to see and experience someone else’s growth, but you cling to the past: “I recall holding you all day when you were a baby. Now…you don’t need me.”
