The end result is worth the struggle, or how it feels to be on the verge of an empty nest.
In 2006, my ex husband sent me an email saying, "I want a divorce. You need to find a job". Needless to say it shattered my world. I had been a stay at home mom for 5 years and had no idea this was coming. He found someone else, someone that he would eventually go on to marry, but at the time I was left with a kindergartner and a third grader, no college degree, no work experience for the past 5 years, and a looming deadline of figuring out what I had to do to survive. However, the one thing I always had was a village. I watched and cared for other people's children, and their families, helped out in church, volunteered, was a team parent... all of those people helped me find my feet again. One of my best friends in the world helped me get a job, other friends helped us move when I found a little townhouse to buy despite making $11 an hour, helped feed us, and helped support us. I could not have done any of this without them. We STRUGGLED. And when I say struggled? I