I'm a full time mother and a full time college student. My best friend, who is now a mother of two beautiful twin babies, called me Wonder Woman, after I had my son and went back full time at school so I could finish. Yes, I do have a very energetic two year old which makes doing any kind of homework much more difficult, but I wouldn't say "Wonder Woman."
There are many other women who have more kids than I do with much more difficult circumstances than I do. Many divorced or otherwise single mom's are going back to school. A classmate of mine was talking with me just this evening about her three kids, ranging from eleven to three years old, who is planning to graduate when I do. She isn't just doing it with kids, but she's doing it without a husband. I'm twenty-three years old and, while she's not ancient and needing a walker to get around, she's older than I am by at least fifteen years.
If anything, she, and all the women like her who are forced by circumstance to go back to school and take and pay for hundreds of credit hours, are the real Wonder Women.
Often times I complain about this teacher or that assignment. I may have dyslexia, which makes reading assignments as an English Major that much more difficult. We are given (no joke) fifteen novel length books alongside a plethora of short stories and essays that we are asked to read for one single class. I don't even read some of the material because I know I won't be able to finish the entire novel and my other classes assignments at the same time. Right now, if I were to get a good grade in this particular literature class, my history and writing classes would tank. I've had many moments where I have to weigh the many against the one--and this class, with an awful teacher, is the one that gets left behind.
Is it Wonder Woman to prioritize and manage my time? Is it Wonder Woman to suddenly realize that while I've been doing homework my son has watched three movies in a row and it's suddenly almost nap time and no one has eaten lunch? Is it Wonder Woman to freak out and feel like my brain is about to explode because so many words have suddenly been jam-packed into it like an overloaded suitcase? Not one more sock, not one more word, will fit in this suitcase no matter how hard I try at times. It makes my head ache being on the verge of explosion as I hit ten o'clock at night and crawl into bed because I can't take consciousness anymore.
There is no way, I could do this--being a mom of a two year old, do school whether it was full time or not--on my own. If I was on my own I would also have to have some type of job as well. I don't think I could honestly do it. Any two of the three, yes. But I couldn't do all of them on my own. Even with my supportive husband I can only do two.
If it weren't for my husband and the support that he is--he wants me to finish school and become an author and be the mother I want to be--I couldn't do it. I am weak like that. Having him near makes me strong.
So am I Wonder Woman?
No. That title goes to other women who go through more than I do and succeed.
I am a Partner. Partner in my marriage. When I am at class, my loving husband watches our son. When I'm at home doing homework he is at work or does "ground control" to keep our son occupied so I'm not disturbed--too much. And when I graduate in December, then my husband can fully occupy himself with his schooling and his career. My husband has given me my time to gain the knowledge I wish to acquire, then I can do the same for him. All the while, having our beautiful family.
I don't need to be Wonder Woman, because I have a wonderful husband who tells me that I don't have to go through this alone.
