Stepping Stones

by: Angela Munoz

On the second day of the doctoral residency, Dr. Mercer presented the class with a multitude of quirky journal prompts consisting of graphic designs paired with common work principles including several comparisons of how we view our trifles now, compared with how we will view them in the future. The graphics depict encouraging images of struggle and triumph. For me, there is one specific image that shows a person proudly standing on top of their failures, while the other person is struggling to carrying them. While these graphics are simple, they are powerful in their ability to depict the duality of success and failure, and how at times it is difficult to tell the difference between these two opposing forces.

Through these stark comparisons, we are allowed to rethink how we view our specific situations through different lenses, and at times we do not see the big picture, as we are each in survival mode and it is difficult to see progress. It can be especially difficult to imagen what our lives will look like when we finally reach the end of the long game. In a similar way, it can also be difficult to recognize images of ourselves once we have changed so drastically.

On a personal note, the doctoral journey is especially significant when I imagen a young woman struggling to make a name for herself when she did not even know her own name. After graduating from high school, I learned that my maiden name, Cable, was not my real last name. While I was completing my master’s degree I learned my true last name, my heritage, and grew to love my new family. Although the name Romano will not be the last name on my final degree, I get to carry it proudly while I walk across that stage.

For most of my life, my maiden name symbolized failure, shame, and the unknown, and I carried it like a two-ton weight. When I found my family, I put that shameful weight down, and I have been able to stand tall on those stepping stones of experience and reach places I never thought possible.