Meet Kao Vang.

I’ll be honest. I needed a break from the street. So when I happened upon a clothing store, I went right in, willing to chat with anyone. It was then that I met Kao Vang.

I asked Kao Vang one question. “If you didn’t have to worry about money, what would you do with your life?”

This was her response.

Generally speaking, Kao Vang would “want a life that she’d enjoy and feel fulfilled.” She would do a lot of traveling. And she’d still work, but would primarily “invest in education” for herself and her daughter. She’d “get as much education as she could since she’d have all the money to do it.”

If Kao Vang didn’t have to worry about money at all, she’d get a degree in criminal psychology. Ultimately, she’d like to work for the United States government, do anti-terrorism work, or help soldiers with post traumatic stress disorder. Her daughter’s dad is in the military, so she’s “always been super supportive of anything military.”

Kao Vang realizes it would take a lot of schooling to make her dreams happen. Some years back, she was enrolled in school for nursing, but switched to psychology. She decided it was too difficult to go to college full-time, work full-time and care for her daughter, too, so she stopped going to school when her daughter was young.

Kao Vang is considering going back to school “in the next year or so.” Her daughter is becoming more independent. And Kao Vang has a good working relationship with her daughter’s dad, so she thinks they’d be able to divide care of their daughter in a way that would allow Kao Vang to re-enroll.

So what can we learn from Kao Vang?

If you need to go back to school in order to fulfill your dreams, just know it’s never too late.

Maybe you need to finish your high school degree, maybe you need to complete that GED. Maybe you started college, but never finished. Or maybe you always wanted your master’s degree, but never got it.

It is never too late. The opportunity has not passed.

If you want that degree, if you need that degree, if that degree is your dream? Then go for it.

Truly, I tell you. Go for it.

So tell me…is there anyone out there whose dream involves going back to school? I’d love to hear about it and encourage you on your journey.

*This post is a part of a month-long 31 Days series titled Dreams from the Street. If you’d like to read more from my series, click here and you’ll be brought to the series landing page where all 31 posts are listed and linked! You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/AmyBPederson where I’ll tweet links to all 31 posts using hashtag #write31days, and I’d LOVE to connect on Facebook at facebook.com/AmyBPederson! I’m so glad you stopped by. Make yourself comfortable and take a peek around the place. You’re welcome back anytime.