with thanks, the end

writing the last page of my dissertation

I wrote the final words of my dissertation yesterday — not its conclusion, but the Acknowledgements. The argument itself has been complete for nearly a month, but this was the last piece waiting for me. It was not one I wanted to rush.

I had only 250 words to acknowledge and thank the people who have walked alongside me in this life-changing journey I’ve had, and I would need at least five times that space just to name them all. Many of you who are reading these words are included on that list!

I’m happy with how the section turned out, and I hope that the right people feel seen when they read it (even those who were more obstacle than ally along the way):

Acknowledgements

I choose to end this dissertation with gratitude and to begin your reading of it with sincere thanks to those who made it possible and who helped me remain whole as I wrote.

To my doctoral supervisor and friend, Dr. Debbie Pushor, thank you for your steady guidance and for helping me trust both the work and myself.

To the members of my committee, thank you for your thoughtful mentoring and for the time and care you gave so generously. I am not the same educator or person I was when I began.

To Cleo, Jim, and Helly, thank you for trusting me with your stories and for helping me step beyond the mis-educative narratives that once shaped how I saw myself at USask.

To all my academic sisters and siblings, thank you for the many Zoom writing sessions, the retreats and café dates, and for the space you held as I wrote my way through it all.

To Katy, thank you for being my writing guru.

To Emmalee Anne, thank you for being the light of my life.

To Danny C., thank you for being my sherpa through it all.

To the native prairie landscape of Grasslands that grounds me, thank you for reminding me of where I stand.

And to the many challenges behind these pages, thank you for deepening my roots in the values that guide and shape me. Because of you, I know who I am.

I’m done — and just starting.
Both are true.