Growth often waits just beyond our comfort zone—not in big, flashy moments, but in the quiet decisions to keep showing up for ourselves.

My son came to more college classes with me than most adults ever attend. As a teenage mom, I knew education was the key to giving us a future—and I never stopped learning, even when life got hard. This is a story about grit, growth, and why it’s never too late to invest in yourself.

"On the hard days, I don’t push—I pause. I ask myself what I really need, not what the world expects of me. Because joy doesn’t come from comparison; it comes from connection—within ourselves, with nature, and with the quiet moments that remind us we’re enough, just as we are."