he's thirty and he did it

Brian's goal was to be finished with school by the time he was thirty.

I remember being twenty-three and thinking how far away thirty sounded.  It was forever.  I remember being twenty five and having many of our friends graduating and feeling like we still had forever to go.  I remember being twenty-seven and wishing so much for the day that we would be done and finally settling down into a home, our home.  At twenty-nine I remember going through the worst year of my life and thinking that it would never end and gazing longingly at the finish line.


And now here we are.  We're thirty.  Brian has been going to school for nine years straight.  Nine years straight!  He made a goal all those years ago, and now he has finally accomplished it.  He put in so much work, dedication and sacrifice to get there.  

I really don't even know if I have words for this.

I am so proud of him.

I guess that's about all there is to it, but of course, it's me, so there will surely be more words.

I know that many men go through rigorous classes, programs and experiences to get to their careers, and I don't want to make it sound like Brian went through something more difficult or intense than anybody else.  I know that many work hard to get to where they are.

It's just that I was there with him during it.  I saw exactly how difficult it was.  How exhausting it was and I was there watching him sacrifice so much in his life as he went along.  I sacrificed for it too.  So although I don't want to come off boastful about his accomplishment, I know exactly what it took to get there, and knowing all that it took from him, from me, and from our family, I am stinkin' proud of this man.

Also, I can't really run around my life bragging that my husband got his masters degree with a 3.96 g.p.a., so this is pretty much the place to do it.

I learned a lot about him during these two and a half years.

He is disciplined- he never slacked on his schoolwork.  He never procrastinated and was always prepared.  He went through a 20 pound box of note cards- studying each card several times over the course of a year. That's like two thousand cards.  Or more maybe.  For the first three weeks in January he studied from nine a.m. to about four p.m. every.single.day.  Those are just a few areas where he showed extreme discipline.

He is brave- Being a nurse anesthetist is no joke.  People's lives are literally in your hands.  It is nerve wracking, terrifying even at times (so I can imagine, hehe).  Not only did he learn to provide safe, quality anesthesia, but he did this at close to a dozen different hospitals.  He rotated around every couple months to a new hospital and this was basically like starting a new job each time.  That's like twelve first days of work in the course of two and a half years.  New people, new equipment, new protocols, new everything.  I really can't even imagine doing that.

He doesn't complain- I love this about Brian, maybe because I'm such a complainer!  He did not ever complain about things he had to do- even the hard things.  He just accepted the responsibility and actions that it took and would just do it.

He works hard- There were many rotations where he would leave for work at 5:30a.m. and not be home until just before the kids went to bed.  At some locations they work the students extremely hard- barely leaving them time to eat lunch, and he was exhausted by the end of the day.

He is smart- There is a lot you have to know to preform anesthesia.  He is so much smarter than I ever thought he could be.  Not that I didn't think he was smart- he always was- but he knows so much and I am constantly amazed at the medical knowledge that is just in his brain now.  It's remarkable.

He sacrifices- He gave up most of his hobbies to one, get through school and two, spend the remaining time with us.  He sacrificed his time, comfort, energy and time with his family to get through school.  He lived in lonely, horrible conditions and worked in toxic, horrible conditions.  He drove three hours every weekend sometimes to come home to us.  He sacrificed a lot.

He still lived- Although he did sacrifice and work hard in school, I really appreciate that he was still able to be the wonderful dad that he always was, and that when he was not at school or studying he was very present with us and we were still able to make memories and have fun.

Although I was happy that he was still able to be himself during this difficult time, I will never forget when he got home from Seattle for the last time and during that weekend- when he was finally free- I was able to see my Brian again.  He was visibly different.  A weight had been lifted.  It's really good to have him back.

We did it!

Twelve buddies.

I think they're kind of proud of him too.

Good job, Bri.  I really love you.