Adjourning

I have belonged to many groups where our work had ended and we had to say goodbye. I think the hardest to say goodbye to was not on a professional level but on a more informal level. My daughter took dancing lessons at a local dancing school since she was 4 years old. In April she graduated from her dancing school at the age of 18. This dancing school was very involved as they took part in parades, competitions, and an elaborate recital at the end of each school year. For many of you, you may be thinking of the TV show Dance Moms. Well I can assure you it was nothing like that. The school was a very family friendly place where all girls were treasured. We the parents all grew together over the past 14 years. We shared stories as we waited in the waiting room, we traveled together to parades, and we cheered and cried together at competitions. Although we did not associate with each other on a social level, we had such a bond through our daughters and through our passion for making our girls happy. I remember an instance when one of the girls lost her feather headpiece for a dance. All the moms took one feather from their daughters' headpieces and was able to make a new headpiece for the girl. When our girls graduated we all hugged and cried. We watched our daughters grow from babies through their awkward stages and now into beautiful young women. We knew that each girl would be moving in a different direction and as a result we would be moving with them. We all looked at each other and agreed, "What a great ride" I miss those moments with those ladies but I am also glad that I had the experience.

For this master's program at Walden University, I will be saying goodbye to groups of women twice. I followed the same group of colleagues for the first five courses and then took a short break for eight weeks. I was very sad to leave those women because I was accustomed to the way they wrote their discussions and how they responded. However it did not take long once I started again in September to make new friends. I have learned so much from all my colleagues and although we may not be able to speak to each other personally, I know we have had the same challenges and struggles. We have gotten to know so much about each person. I know I have shared stories with my colleagues that no one else knows. In our courses, mutual respect and trust was present. We trusted that we would not be judged by our challenges in life but we would be given encouragement and hope. I will miss our special kind of collaboration.