Article May 13, 2002 Issue

A single mom trusts God to carry her through

By Patricia Lesesne

I'm 27—and I've been a mother over half my life now. While most of my friends were in school, I was in the hospital delivering my daughter, Whitney. And even though I was a teenage mom, in many ways I managed to stay either on the same path as my friends or even ahead of them. After Whitney was born, I went back to school and did very well. Most of my friends did not work full time, but despite being a student, I found a full-time job that could support my household.

I am finally graduating from college—several years later than my friends. But because of my sometimes winding road to the present, along with my degree, I have a lot of work experience and a very clear idea of who I am.

Of course there have been times when my path has woven in and out of the conventional path, but I've never gotten "off the path" nor been displaced. In particular, my educational opportunities have increased the quality of Whitney's educational opportunities. Because I've been in school all of her life, we've often spent our evenings and weekends doing our homework together. Following this unusual winding path, sometimes I felt as if I was so far behind my peers, or maybe off the mark altogether. But I've come to see that I was really on the mark after all. And sometimes I found myself ahead of the mark!

About the author

Patricia will graduate in June from Harvard University, and plans to begin graduate work at Tufts University in the fall. Whitney, who is now 15, has been accepted at Boston Arts Academy, a performing arts high school.

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