I found out few hours ago that my mom passed her licensing exam to become a psychologist! I am very excited and proud of her and I thought it only fitting that I dedicate a post to her because she is the perfect example of how we all have it in us to follow our dreams and make them a reality.

First, a little background. My mom is 55 years old (a beautiful and adorable 55) and has been going to school pretty much non-stop for about 15 years. She completed her unfinished B.A., went on to graduate school and has spent the last several years working on her PhD and internship-mostly while working full time. She had my sister and me before she was twenty-four and spent most of our childhood being a housewife and living with serious depression. She didn’t have a lot of confidence in herself then and I think for many years she must have carried a secret hope of going back to school while doubting she could actually do it.

When I look at my mom now I’m proud of her not only because she has realized her dream of becoming a psychologist (and that took incredible determination and intelligence) but because she has blossomed into a woman I admire. She has worked very hard to open her heart, let herself feel love and be loved by others. She is bravely facing the dark places inside of herself, setting boundaries with people who don’t respect her, and letting herself grieve for what she didn’t do when she was younger.

My mother has taken her strengths (insight into human nature, an insatiable desire to understand the mind, and trust in the healing process) and become someone who can help others. She has personal experience with suffering and a fabulous education and I believe that many people will benefit from her wisdom and presence.

She’s a wonderful role model for what we can do when we set our minds to a dream our heart has.