Double Digits

11

When I was 11 my family got back together after a six-month separation. My sister Amy and I had been sent to my Aunt's house, my sisters Meg and Jo to my paternal grandmother and my mother had moved back in with her parents. Everyone moved back in together except for Jo and my dog. We also gained a quasi step-father--my mother's then boyfriend. That year I joined the girl scouts; I started middle school; I adopted pet rats; and I got my period. I was more developed then most of my schoolmates and received a lot of unwanted attention because of it. It was a year of transition and change.

22

When I was 22 I was living with my boyfriend. I graduated college that year. I was already working in a full-time office job with benefits and responsibilities but I wanted a change. That was the year I started working at the hospital-Ivy League medical school. I ended up staying there 17 years. That was the year I decided to marry my boyfriend, mostly because I wanted a baby. I ended up marrying him shortly after turning 23. That was a year of growth and commitment.

33

When I was 33 I realized I could no longer avoid ending my 10 year marriage. I was ABD and working as a project manager in a research institute, where I had been for the last 10 years. I was miserable. It took half of the year to actually make the break and move myself and Angel out of the apartment we shared with my ex-husband. I remember sitting in the living room of my new apartment all alone and reveling in the space and freedom. Three months later I met b and we had our first date. It was a year of new beginnings.

44

Yesterday I turned 44. I'm wondering what the year will bring.