Forged in Fire: What Made You a Better Person?

[Hound of Heaven]

I'm initiating this thread for everyone to share the events and moments in life that have contributed to your growth as a person. I will return shortly to share how mowing lawns for money at the age of 7 taught me the importance of financial value.

[IWMP]

I'm initiating this thread for everyone to share the events and moments in life that have contributed to your growth as a person. I will return shortly to share how mowing lawns for money at the age of 7 taught me the importance of financial value.

7? Wowsers.

Not sure what to share. It's hard to know what makes us who we are. I'll try to share something without writing a book lol.

I guess if I think about what stands out as being something that consciously determined things in my life, I can think of some things.

I think, where I grew up, not many people went to University. Certainly not from the school I went to and not in my family either. I hadn't set out to specifically go to university before moving to England. I wanted to be a Dr from a youngish age but knew eventually that I wasn't capable. In my childhood, there were many moments where I was made aware that I was behind. I can look back now and say why that was the case. But there were moments where I was very aware of what was going on but didn't express anything. There was a day when I was sat at the coffee table and my mum and dad were having something of an argument. I was doodling and drawing flowers and my dad was talking about me being a retard. My mum didn't agree and argued that it was better than I was at home playing with toys than running about the streets with other teenagers. He shouted, " looks at her, she's a retard,". I didn't react. I just kept on doodling as if I couldn't hear the conversation but I took it all in. Another such event was at school. I had asked the librarian who was also the careers advisor about becoming a doctor. And about going to university. She had a reaction as if to say no chance. She felt the need to give me an analogy as to why I would never go to university. She pointed to a table and said, " you are like that table, except you only have three legs". I was very literal so my mind was running through the idea of being a table with three legs. I didn't respond again but the sentiment didn't escape me. I had a sense of understanding that she was saying I was basically a sandwich short of a picnic. So I just continued about with life. Autopiloting through.

Things changed though.

We ran away, leaving my dad and school behind. I had finished my exams. And eventually I was able to receive the results of my exams. And I do wonder if some teachers got a bit of a shock because they often put me down or said I wasn't capable and I didn't do too bad for a kid that was in their own world, unaware that homework or studying existed.

Eventually we moved to England and I wanted to continue aiming to be a doctor. But there's an age difference between Scottish and English education which meant I was too young to go onto the next stage and this meant I went back a year. Things happened that began the severe anxiety and difficulties. I struggled to navigate the differences. I found myself in a school where I wasn't getting beat up or bullied, where teachers were telling me I was intelligent. I was so confused. I never believed them. I couldn't wrap my head around it. I was riddled with anxiety. I had this mind as a young kid where I wanted to know everything but didn't have access. So I often wondered and imagined and then I started learning about Physics and I loved learning about sub atomic particles and waves and just nature in general. I was always drawn to nature and often would watch trees swaying out of the window when I was in Scotland. Which probably added to the perspective my dad had. OHHH MYYY GOOOOOODNESSS!!! OUR HAMSTER IS DRIVING ME CRAZY!!!!! SHE HAS ESCAPED A DOZEN TIMES AT LEAST. BOUGHT HER A NEW CAGE BECAUSE SHE CHEWED THROUGH THE LAST ONE TWICE. AND SHE HAS ESCAPED EVERYTHING ELSE AND NOW SHE HAS CHEWED THROUGH THE NEW CAGE. BRAND NEW CAGE. HUSBAND IS LIKE HAVE YOU GOT ANY TAPE, MATE, IF SHE CAN CHEW THROUGH PLASTIC DO YOU REALLY THINK TAPE IS GOING TO STOP HER? I can't DEAL WITH THIS ANYMORE. WE HAVE HAD NEARLY A YEAR OF THIS. Arghhhhhh.

I forgot what I was saying.... That hamster doesn't want to be a hamster. Got her a big cage and lots of things because apparently they need lots of space. She wants the whole house to run around in. She isn't even a good hider. We find her every time. She just walks past us. Honestly never getting a hamster again.

ETA:

Oh yeah. So basically what I was saying is, I went to university to study physics and at first I was doing it to prove people wrong. But half way through I realised... Who the hell are they that I need to prove anything and stopped caring about proving I wasn't a retard. Got my degree.

[msnobody]

Too bad we tend to figure these things out later in life, Pirate.

Fast forward myself to now. I now realize that I could have been anything I wanted to be. At the time I graduated high school, I didn’t know “how” you go to college. A couple of weeks after graduation, my daddy told me, “You’re not going to just sit around here. Your cousin, Jan, went to school and became a nurse.” So, down to the community college I went and became a licensed practical nurse. At the ripe old age of 50, I went bank to school, and became a registered nurse. I realize now, I could have been anything I wanted to be career wise. I just didn’t know how to do it. My parents were not college graduates, and the high school guidance counselor provided no guidance whatsoever. Now, with only an ADN degree, I earn more than some of my high school contemporaries who went to college right after high school earning higher degrees.

[yellowstone123]

I'm initiating this thread for everyone to share the events and moments in life that have contributed to your growth as a person. I will return shortly to share how mowing lawns for money at the age of 7 taught me the importance of financial value.

Thanks for posting the thread, Hound of Heaven. This is an important topic. One of the things that I learned through painful experience is to follow up and complete what you commit to doing. I'll wait until you relate the lesson you learned from mowing lawns and then add some of mine. Lots of great comments here that I relate to, and I would like to add some experience and observations.