This is not the life I was meant to have. In 2006, my intended life was plundered and replaced with another when my father abandoned his wife and four kids. He was never heard from again. My perfect life, with its white picket fence and wallpapered walls, came crashing down. Suddenly, before I was even old enough to recognize and conceptualize the idea of a nuclear family, it was all gone.
At that point, I would never have been able to guess what it would mean to be raised by a single mother without a college degree. I could not have told you the number of times we would move to find some semblance of stability. I would not have dreamed of the identity challenges my three brothers and I would face due to such outright rejection from a parent. …show more content…
For one, I had an unmatched passion for learning. My intended field of Near Eastern studies required a university education. However, I also knew that I did not want to be in the same position as my mother. I did not want a spouse to be in charge of my financial well-being. I did not want children to be the only source of fulfillment in my life. I wanted to be in control of my own destiny. I wanted to go to college.
However, my desire to go to college seemed nearly impossible. My father was a chemical engineer. Since my parents were married in the early 1980s, he made a six-figure income. College would have been an easy option with him in the picture. Without him in the picture, there was no extra money. My mom was scraping to make ends meet. Even with working in my teenage years, there was not enough to save up for …show more content…
I am a Seventh-day Adventist Christian. Though a woman founded the denomination, Seventh-day Adventism has struggled to come to terms with how women should fill leadership roles. This past summer, church officials and delegates voted against allowing women to be ordained as ministers. As a female biblical studies student and Seventh-day Adventist, I am highly unusual. During my undergraduate years, a number of professors in my major department felt that I should not be studying with my male colleagues. However, I do not believe in these distinctions. I do not believe there is innate cause or justification for men to study biblical studies to the exclusion of women. In a world steeped in inequalities, academia should be egalitarian. Religion should never be the cause for subjugation of any
At that point, I would never have been able to guess what it would mean to be raised by a single mother without a college degree. I could not have told you the number of times we would move to find some semblance of stability. I would not have dreamed of the identity challenges my three brothers and I would face due to such outright rejection from a parent. …show more content…
For one, I had an unmatched passion for learning. My intended field of Near Eastern studies required a university education. However, I also knew that I did not want to be in the same position as my mother. I did not want a spouse to be in charge of my financial well-being. I did not want children to be the only source of fulfillment in my life. I wanted to be in control of my own destiny. I wanted to go to college.
However, my desire to go to college seemed nearly impossible. My father was a chemical engineer. Since my parents were married in the early 1980s, he made a six-figure income. College would have been an easy option with him in the picture. Without him in the picture, there was no extra money. My mom was scraping to make ends meet. Even with working in my teenage years, there was not enough to save up for …show more content…
I am a Seventh-day Adventist Christian. Though a woman founded the denomination, Seventh-day Adventism has struggled to come to terms with how women should fill leadership roles. This past summer, church officials and delegates voted against allowing women to be ordained as ministers. As a female biblical studies student and Seventh-day Adventist, I am highly unusual. During my undergraduate years, a number of professors in my major department felt that I should not be studying with my male colleagues. However, I do not believe in these distinctions. I do not believe there is innate cause or justification for men to study biblical studies to the exclusion of women. In a world steeped in inequalities, academia should be egalitarian. Religion should never be the cause for subjugation of any