Education is an important learning tool and can be very challenging. I know because I had to struggle with it during my high school years. From the time I entered Grade 7 in an adjusted class and going through Gr.8 and 9, it didn’t get any better. I felt like an outsider with a lot of frustration and other feelings. There I was sitting in the classroom completely feeling out of place, trying to do my best at the subjects and ended up failing all of them. I never had someone like a tutor to help me out with my schoolwork and say okay you can do this. I never really made any friends at the time because everyday when I went in that classroom, the students would pick on me and they thought they were smarter and better.
When I finished school, I went to the Flower Cart in 1978 and was an employee there working in the bakery. I worked at that place for over a year and after that, I got a new job in 1980 working for a cleaning company. Over the past ten years, I have had various jobs and the idea of going back to school never crossed my mind. I had someone who was very important to me, and that was my son. Here I was unemployed raising a child to the best of my ability so he could have a good life when he grew up. At the back of my mind, I knew I wanted to do something more with my life. I needed to find someone who would help me on the way. As part of this experience, I got my GED in 1995. Three years later, I found out about an advertising place that was hiring. I called about the job.
I went for the interview and immediately got hired to work in the mailroom. I found following the instructions and the responsibilities to be a challenge during that time. I was then employed with this publishing company for five years.
One day I was talking to Joy Power and she mentioned that I might be interested in coming to a workshop. Then she brought up an idea that I liked better. She said that the Learning Center was beginning a five day a week class. I was happy about this idea and I spoke with one of the people who works there. Since then, I have come a long way and now I am attending school at VCLA in Kentville, an Adult Learning Program. I learned about this program through a friend who told me that the course was starting in October. This was my one chance in a lifetime to further my education. This has been an overwhelming learning experience to grab the chance to better myself. Now I have friends who accept me and I feel that anything is possible once you set your mind to it.