Super Kid?

After my junior, year I realized that I was going to need to go an extra semester, so I took off for the fall so I could graduate in May. I lived with Terry and worked two jobs so I could earn more money for college. I paid for my entire college by selling books during the summer, working part-time jobs on campus, and received Social Security and VA death benefits from my birth father.

Taking off a sememster was a wise decision. When I came back, my grades improved, and everything seemed more under control. My senior year, I had the opportunity to live with my TNT social club sponsor, along with my good friend Doug. It was a great honor to live with Doc. He was a music professor at Harding and probably the greatest sponsor a men's social club has ever had. This was also a very stabalizing force. My grades my senior year were my best.

When I was doing some research in the library, I came across an article in Psychology Today entitled, Super Kids. It was about how certain kids were more resilient than others and were able to overcome difficult childhoods. After reading the article, I decided that I was a superkid.

During the college years I didn't talk about my past with anyone. Now, years later, I wish I had taken advantage of the counseling offered to help me work through my past. I never "acted out" so there was no way of knowing that inside I severely struggled with my self image. When someone has had a complex past, it is difficult to have the proper perspective of yourself.

Last fall I had the opportunity to take my son to college (ACU) to begin his sophomore year. I went to the first chapel service and thought about how Christian universities need to market their counseling services more. There are students who believe that they are "superkids." They think that they do not need to work through their painful past. Maybe students who have used these services could give testimonies in chapel about how helpful they were.

I graduated with a degree in Biblical Studies and a minor in Social Science. I didn't graduate with honors, but it was a tremendous honor to graduate. My parents made it to the graduation, which was the first time they had been to Harding. It was a very proud moment. One of the very meaningful experiences was graduating with my long time friend, Valarie Busby Burns. We started first grade together, and with the exception of my senior year of high school, we were in the same school from elementary school to college. She married my housemate, Doug.

The next choice was a career.