In the spirit of the holiday, I just want to focus on appreciation and gratitude. Doctoral reflections can wait!
Here’s my “thankful” list, in no particular order:
I will gather with family again – even though this
time it’s just the ones I live with – for another Thanksgiving.
I have everything I need.
COVID has given me the gift of additional time
to write and research.
I’m getting closer to completing my doctorate.
I recognize my process is unique to me and it’s
okay.
My husband is supportive.
I’m more patient now.
I believe in my subject matter (Social Emotional
Learning and leadership).
I have the strength and will to keep working.
My daughters are supportive (most days).
I’m not discouraged (this week).
Through my reading, writing, and research, I’m
learning and growing.
I have a great family.
I have faith in God to sustain me through this
journey and everything to come.
I hope and pray that you appreciate your many reasons to be thankful, too, despite anything else. Happy Thanksgiving!
(A former journalist
currently working on her doctorate in Social Emotional Learning, Vanessa is a
dedicated and passionate educator in the DC Public Schools system. She loves
learning, leadership, innovation, collaboration, and discovering new ways to
drive student gains and support staff members).
They’ve taken on a whole new meaning as I work through this
huge writing project. I’m calling it a huge writing project because, ultimately,
that’s what it is.
(Speaking of writing, I thought I was pretty good before
this process; but I digress. That’s a different blog.)
Here’s what happens on Saturdays. I “sleep in” until 7 or 8 a.m. Yes, that’s sleeping in for me now that I’m older. Then I write until 10 a.m. before breaking for breakfast with Deron and our regular call to my mother-in-law.
I resume writing between 11:30 a.m. and noon and keep at it
until about 4 or 5 p.m. (with small breaks). That happens every Saturday
without fail.
I actually look forward to it because that’s the day when I
can get a great deal of work done without interruption.
So, what I have discovered about myself as each Saturday is
spent writing all day?
I’m more disciplined than I thought. I have started and
stopped so many things in my life that I never consider myself a person of discipline. However,
I’ve been tackling this dissertation for about three years now, steadily
working, especially on Saturdays.
So, the lesson is I’m disciplined when I decide it’s worth
my time.
How about you?
What things do you manage to do, no matter what? What about
those things you want to do – or so you say – but haven’t quite started yet?
Even as I sit here writing this blog, I recognize the commitment
to be disciplined in this moment. It’s exciting to know I can stick with
something and reach a long-wanted to goal.
Right now, it’s still difficult to imagine being done with
this journey. But if I remain disciplined, I believe I’ll ultimately get there.
And I bet you, too, have more discipline than you imagine.
(A former journalist currently working on her
doctorate in Social Emotional Learning, Vanessa is a dedicated and passionate educator
in the DC Public Schools system. She loves learning, leadership, innovation, collaboration,
and discovering new ways to drive student gains and support staff members.)
Joseph Hsu, MD, has a keen understanding of our veterans’ contributions to society. He graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point. He then went on to serve in Iraq during some of American troops’ fiercest encounters with enemy forces. He has used his training and skill to help numerous veterans recover from their injuries. Through his dedicated years of service, he was even awarded the Bronze Star Medal – the fourth highest ranking award a service member can receive for a heroic and meritorious deed performed in conflict.
Dr. Hsu also sees a connection that perhaps many may overlook: the medical advances that civilians can enjoy as a result of veterans’ sacrifices. He thinks about it often, especially during the “NFL Salute to Service” campaign, which the Carolina Panthers will celebrate on Nov. 15 when they honor him and host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“We are proud of our longstanding partnership with the Carolina Panthers and honored to celebrate and recognize members of the military as part of the NFL’s Salute to Service. Atrium Health is committed to extending appreciation to those who have previously served and those who are currently serving our country,” says Claude T. Moorman III, MD, president at Atrium Health Musculoskeletal Institute.
“I couldn’t be more honored to be part of ‘Salute to Service,’” says Dr. Hsu, an orthopedic surgeon who serves as vice chair of quality at Atrium Health Musculoskeletal Institute and director of the limb lengthening and deformity program. “The Panthers have been very involved in veterans’ affairs and I’ve been fortunate to be part of that.
“The team has been instrumental in raising money and supporting the Veterans Bridge Home,” he says. “This is a pro sports team that’s really dedicated to vets’ issues. The Panthers put their money where their mouth is.”
I’ve been writing about this
doctoral journey of mine (emphasis on MINE), as if it’s all about me.
However, it’s not just my journey to take alone. Yes, I have to do the writing on my own, but the journey is so much more than writing. If the journey really was ALL MINE, I wouldn’t need to ask for help. If I could possibly get this done by myself, that would be great.
But I can’t.
I need a whole lot of help.
And I’m not just talking about my committee chair and all the other university
employees who support doctoral students. I’m talking about my family, friends, co-workers,
acquaintances, and strangers – and most of all, God.
The realization that I need
others along this journey reminds me just how challenging it is. I think God
designed it this way because He wants us to understand that we, in fact, do need
each other. At this point in my doctoral
journey I’m beginning to reach out to participants, many of whom I don’t know.
I’ve got to ask them for help.
I have to stretch myself more and figure out how to get folks to talk to me. I need people so I can get this done.
But isn’t that how life works?
None of us travels through
life without needing some help. We can’t reach our goals without some help. I think that’s a good thing. And it’s something
I need to remember while moving forward on this path … and every path ahead in
my travels.
Yes, we all need assistance
sometimes, not just to earn a doctorate. And it’s okay.
So, reach out. Look around and find the aid you need.
But don’t forget to look up. That’s
where our real help comes from.
(A former journalist
currently working on her doctorate in Social Emotional Learning, Vanessa is a
dedicated and passionate educator in the DC Public Schools system. She loves
learning, leadership, innovation, collaboration, and discovering new ways to
drive student gains and support staff members).
I’m learning a lot in pursuit of this doctorate, not the
least of which centers around Social Emotional Learning. But the pursuit is a
lesson in itself, leading to a series of revelations.
Epiphany No. 1: This blog is a form of therapy. I
think the doctoral process calls for some form of therapy, and a blog is the
perfect opportunity for someone like me who enjoys writing, reflecting, and
emoting on paper (or more accurately, my computer screen). So thank you for
taking this journey with me.
Epiphany No. 2: I don’t talk much about my
doctoral process because secretly I’m afraid of never finishing. If that becomes
the case, I’ll have to tell everyone that I’m ABD – All But Dissertation. Some people
use the term. I’ll just let that sit there without further commentary.
Epiphany No. 3: Sometimes I’m scared to open
emails from my dissertation committee chair. Unfortunately, it feels like she holds
all the power. The process of submitting drafts and waiting for feedback isn’t
much fun, especially if you expect the chair to say, “Start all over” (see
Epiphany No. 1).
Epiphany No. 4: No one can truly help. I mean, people try. I guess the encouragement doesn’t hurt. But no one can actually help you write your dissertation. Your process is yours alone. The sooner you accept, that the better.
Epiphany No. 5: You have no idea when you will
finish. When you start this journey, everyone tells you it takes time and it’s
hard and it’s an iterative process. All that means is you don’t really know
when it will end, and that’s a frightening thought.
Epiphany No. 6: Other people have finished, so why can’t I? If you ask anyone who has successfully completed this odyssey, chances are they experienced moments of doubt that they’d finish. But they did it.
My journey continues …
(A former journalist currently working on her doctorate in Social Emotional Learning, Vanessa is a dedicated and passionate educator in the DC Public Schools system. She loves learning, leadership, innovation, collaboration, and discovering new ways to drive student gains and support staff members)
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