Graduation

After two extremely short years, Sevak is finished with his MBA. It seems like just yesterday we were debating on whether or not to come back to BYU! I am forever grateful that we did--not just because Sevak got a great education and a great degree under his belt, but because we had the most amazing experiences here. I am definitely more sentimental now than I was at the end of our undergraduate experience. Something about seeing these students in their graduation robes just makes me tear up. Maybe it's because we have kids now, so our graduation is more of a "family affair." Maybe it's because Sevak was part of a more intimate class of kids. I made friends with them and their spouses, and even though I wasn't as active in the MBASA as some of the other wives, I still feel sad knowing that I won't have such an awesome support group anymore. Graduation is full of clichés about ending one chapter and beginning another, moving on to change the world, etc., but I'm soaking them all in. The MBA program has been a life-changing experience.

Apart from Sevak finishing his degree, I also got to "finish" mine (I'll take off the quotation marks when I defend my thesis). I started my master's a few years ago after graduating with my bachelor's (December '06). We had a semester before job season started getting underway, so I applied to the French Studies MA program to see what would happen. I got accepted and took one course, but Sevak got offered a job in CA so we left (much to my relief, actually). When we came back to BYU we had already had Rose, so she was my excuse to not resume my studies. Nevertheless, the fact that we could (1) get cheaper health insurance and (2) take out more student loans if I were a student influenced me to get back into it. I didn't foresee actually getting the degree. However, as I got more and more coursework under my belt, I sunk deeper and deeper into the program (and deeper into despair--I was coming closer to the dreaded M.A. exam) ;). This written/oral test was a HUGE deal to me. Shortly before the scheduled date, Sevak went to China and I was pregnant and alone with Rose. I remember trying to schedule review sessions with some of the other M.A. students. I would have them come over after Rose went to bed, or I would meet with them while someone listened to Rose on a baby monitor. At night I would sit in my lonely bed reading books on French literary history. You know how mothers supposedly get huge adrenaline rushes that allow them to do crazy things when their children are in danger? I think I must have experienced something along those lines. It wasn't my children's safety that was motivating me, however; it was the fear of failure. (Unfortunately, fear happens to be a large motivational force in my life. Sevak is more anticipative of success; I am more scared of failure. Haha. At least it got me goin'.) So anyway, I passed that exam and was thrilled. Then I had the dreaded thesis. I dawdled on it for a long, long, time, but I'm currently in one of those fear-of-failure adrenaline rushes.

You know, as scary as this program has been at times, I don't think I ever could have accomplished it as the childless person I was three years ago. My kids have given me something more important than the degree to focus on--I have realized the master's isn't the most crucial thing in my life so I haven't stressed out about it as much as I otherwise would have. If the masters was my only "thing," I would have focused all of my attention on it and would have been way more concerned with perfection--which usually leads to failure. Furthermore, I don't think I could have done this anywhere other than BYU--I had family-friendly professors and a bumload of understanding young mothers (babysitters) right on my little street.

So, thanks, BYU! It has been a great, great, great two years. Thanks, supportive family members--we love you! And great job, Sevak--I am so proud of you!

April 2007

April 2010

P.S. There are pics on other cameras that I'll have to post later. Our families from California and Utah came. Also, my sister Megan walked today--she graduated in economics last December (summa cum laude, I might add). There are cute pics of all three of us grads that I'll have to get soon.