By Vondra Chargois
I graduated from high school nominated the “Wittiest Girl” in my class. When I look up the word “witty” it is defined as someone who was full of or characterized by humor. Looking back I realize there is nothing in the definition of witty that says, superhuman with extra strength and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound… This really amazes me because that is what I ended becoming after high school. Over the years I became superwoman!
I started college right out of high school with the intention of becoming an engineer, in the school of business. My sophomore year in college I decided to pursue the path of education and that is where my real journey began. On my journey to become an educator is when I began my actual journey on the road to life. It was during that time that I became pregnant. Being pregnant and not married was a whole new education within itself for me. All my life I was told how important education was. All I ever wanted for myself was to have a degree and pave my own path in life. Now that the path had a stumbling block I had to decide what route I needed to take next. I knew that my path would be motherhood, so now what? Would all the hard work that I had to do to get into college go to waste? What about marriage and creating a life for the new family I was about to start? To my surprise I was encouraged to drop out of school from all of those that I loved at that time. My mother and the father of my child kept encouraging me to drop out of school. They reminded me of the need for me to work full time and take care of my child. My head and my desire to create a good life for my child made me continue my education. For our future I needed to finish college and get my degree. I wanted to have choices in life for me and my child. I knew this sacrifice would pay off for me in the long run. Getting a degree would give me choices.
I grew up with a mother and a father. I always believed that both parents were needed to have a well balanced family. I eventually married the father of my child and very shortly had my second child a year later. Although it was tough to juggle a family, work and college I never stopped going to college. There would be semesters in which I had to vary how many classes I could actually take. There never seemed to be enough time in the day. All the hours of classes I took started to add up to the degree I needed. My marriage however, was not the happy ending I had hoped for. Three children later, I found myself once again living the life of a single mom. I had a lot of weight on my shoulder at this point in my life. I think this fueled the fire in me even more and encouraged me to work that much harder to finish school. I was single with three children, going to school and working full time. Even with all that was on my plate I never lost sight of my goal which was to get my degree. Everyone I dealt with at school was great, and wanted me to succeed. I still remember taking my final exams two days after giving birth to my third child. I took my newborn child with me to class. My professor held my child for me as I took my final exam. It took me seven years to earn my degree. Against all odds I proved to everyone in my family I could do anything. It was at this point in my life that I started to see the superwoman cape appear on my shoulders.
My strength and what I had accomplished somehow made me appear superhuman. I had nieces, nephews and other relatives move in to live with me and my children. With this new title of “superwoman” came more unexpected responsibility and more demands and needs from those around me. The excitement of me finally becoming a teacher was strongly overshadowed by the needs my children and I had. Unfortunately the salary for teachers did not provide enough money for a single parent with three children to survive comfortably. I loved my job, but as a teacher I found it a challenge to provide for my family. My children were getting older and had more costly needs. My household had expanded and our family was now beyond the average nuclear family. Our family now consisted of my mother, my children and my nephews. Knowing that I wanted to provide the best for my children and family, I knew I needed to make more money. After much thought, I came to the conclusion that I needed to get another full time job. I taught full time and worked the night shift full time at another company. I really was becoming a “super” “woman.” I was a teacher by day, and call center supervisor by night. I did this for three years! I don’t think I slept much then. During those three years I also had to come up with ways that I could be there for my children as a mother. I spent 5 days a week at work all day long. We discussed as a family, that the weekends would be our time to catch up. We used the weekends to do things together and be a family. My extra income gave us the ability to do so. SeaWorld, Six Flags and Chuck E Cheese were our weekend destinations. We did it all and have fond family memories because of it.
My love for teaching really showed at the school where I taught. Because I was a mother I understood the kids, and felt very comfortable with them. They felt comfortable with me as well. My students respected me and looked up to me. To my surprise I was nominated as teacher of the year. That was one of the most touching and meaningful moments of my life. This just confirmed to me that I was in the right job. As my children got older and started their pre-teen and teen years I went back to school part time to get my masters. I wanted to make sure that I did not limit myself in the field of education. As a mother I knew the importance of being a good teacher, and a good administrator. I received my master’s degree and my certification to become a principal to pursue when the time is right.
I look back and am so glad I took the road I have taken. My children have seen through me, that where there is a will there’s a way. My children are now all grown and are all attending college themselves. My life now is my own. I am working currently on my doctorate. Life feels back in order now. My only worry now is what my next adventure will be? It seems for all the sacrifices I made the reward is priceless. I have retired my superwoman cape. I know that at a moment’s notice if needed, I can pull it out again!