The Importance of Education

Vanessa Clark: I was smart going through high school, but like a lot of young girls, I thought that if I didn't hurry up and get married, I'd die an old maid. So, just out of high school I thought I had found "the one" and decided to marry and have kids. It was great. Long story short, it was great until it was over 10 years later. I was left with 3 kids and that's it. I was naive enough to think I didn't need to go on with my education because I had a husband and he would always take care of the kids and I...wrong. If you don't know how hard it is to pay the bills and raise 3 kids without a good job, let me tell you...if you don't have an education it's almost impossible to do without going on welfare. I didn't want to be a stereo-type single mom statistic so I charged through my associate's degree. If anyone has one, you know it's good, but not good enough. I went back for a bachelor's degree (almost done) and have made plans to start for a master's next fall. It seems I'm just now beginning to be able to pay the bills. My point? People don't seem to realize how important that education really is until you need it. Don't wait until you're left holding the bag, trying to feed 3 kids and no way to do it like me. Kids...get your education. If you're older and still haven't done it...do it. It's so much easier to go through school without trying to do your own homework and help your kids with theirs, juggle PTA meetings and classroom parties with your class schedule and so on. I think you get the idea. I'm reminded of the old commercial..."Don't be a fool, stay in school!"