It’s official. I’ve finally graduated university. It’s a BA. The first in my family. It may be small potatoes to some, but being the first to negotiate academia in a family, I feel, is an accomplishment in itself.

I’m happy it’s over, I’m happy I’ve completed it. I didn’t enjoy university and found it lacking in so many ways. Even though it is community services, the discourse is still dominated by older white men.

I’ve faced racism from profs, balancing work/life/school, my heart literally stopping twice (school is not worth your health kids) and being able to jump over those obstacles somehow feels like more than the actual degree.

It’s a bittersweet win for me. I wish I could have had that experience that ignited a fire, but it drained me. I wonder how many others academia drains and we never hear from again and how many are marginalized.

No real point to this rant. Just a “go me!” And “thank god THAT’S over” and I think finishing a degree during a pandemic in itself is pretty badass.