Degree On the Wall

The other night someone asked me why we had our framed diplomas and put them up in our house. I didnt have a great answer for her, I think what I said was something like "well it was a cheap way to fill the space and our house isnt decorated cute to begin with", clearly not my most articulate moment. But later that night and the next day as I was still thinking about my lame answer I came up with something better.

I framed our diplomas to remember. To remember on days when I dont think I can shake off the "mom" fog of diapers, sleep deprivation, and crying, that once upon a time I had conversations about non kid things. To remember that once upon a time I was able to intelligently discuss current events (ok this still happens), literature, and art. To remember that once upon a time I wrote whole papers about what the crimson poppies represented in an obsure Monet painting, to remember that I had lengthy debates with classmates about the benefits of microfinance, vaccinations, etc, and to remember that not that long ago I went to meetings, billed a couple hundred dollars and hour, and provided real insight and value to a team. The diplomas help me remember that if I could do that, I can do this. They help me remember that like I chose to earn my degree, I chose to be a mom, and it is a great choice. They help me remember how far Brian and I have come, from the early Wymount days when it seemed that the degrees on the wall were a mirage, a far off goal that was not quite within our reach. We have a come a long way since those days, and while we have done a lot since leaving Wymount, I think the time we spent there was important, a good start to a long life. The diplomas remind me of parents that pushed me to try harder, be better, and not give up. They remind me of mentors, friends, and professors that wouldnt let me give up, take the easy way out, or settle even when that was what I really wanted to do. They remind me that I want to teach my son the same things: quitting isnt an option, our family goes to college, and that hard work pays off, even if it doesnt always pay off the way you think. They remind me of good friends, happy times, and growing up. They bring back a flood of memories, memories of life in the dorms, meeting Brian, our first apartment, grad school, good friends, just too many things not to keep them up. So the short answer is, I put our diplomas up as a reminder, and trust me it has been a great one.