I did it! Today, I got a call from the undergraduate studies office and I’m cleared for graduation! I passed my comprehensive exam and took down the one class that has been my nemesis. Over and over again I have tried to conquer this class with no success but finally, FINALLY, I understood the subject material and DID IT! I repeatedly read the email from my professor telling me I passed. I even had Big T read it to make sure I read it right. I’m in disbelief not wanting to get my hopes up in fear of the rug being pulled out from underneath me. But I have to accept that it’s real. I’m almost in tears. I’ve been embarrassed and never talk about it. To me, not finishing my bachelor’s when I was supposed to was a complete failure. Every time I saw others with their graduation photos or when I kept enrolling in this class and couldn’t complete it, it hurt more and more. But here I am. Through financial constraints, bad decisions, bouts of depression and anxiety, being a student while working full-time with a family, switching schools and majors and then returning, I made it through. I am an ALUMNA! I couldn’t have done it without my family, blood and made. I may not always do things the “right way” but I always find a way.