Terri2010, 66

Change through Community I am a 50-year-old undergraduate college student. I plan on going on to grad school. I have not owned a car for over a year and love biking and walking! I was recently in Nicaragua for the summer and hope to be returning there regularly. I have 3 kids who are grown and on their own....leaving me free to do whatever I want! Being in college now is terrific.....I am motivated and have always done a lot of reading. After working 1, 2 and 3 jobs to make ends meet while raising the kids, it is a joy to be able to focus on academics. I am able to use my life experience to enhance my education, and feel like now I get to live every day in pursuit of long-held dreams. I want to work in sustainable community development. I have been a social justice activist for years. Now that I have the chance to sit back and look at things, I am building new dreams and visions of what it would mean to make the world a better place. There is one drawback to college now, though: Most of my peers are the same age as my kids. I miss having male companionship. Furthermore, with my years of experience in organizing and working, I would love the opportunity to share ideas with others who share my passion. Looking for friendship, ideas, romance and just the general spice of being able to talk to others who work and live the life of being committed to something better for all of us.
On that suggestion to describe why I feel activism is important I will just say this: I really don't know what in the world is important. As soon as we start thinking something is "important" we may miss something else. I am not an activist because it's "important." I am an activist because it is the only way I know how to be....it feeds my soul and makes me happy.