The life of an out-of-the-ordinary American Desi, part II

Welcome to phase two….after the brain surgery, many parts of my short-term memory were forgotten, but the human brain is magic. It can become a sponge when in need. I remember the day coming back from the hospital at the age of 25, I wrote down “2+2=” and had no clue what the answer was. I was on the verge of breaking down. Just imagine, growing up in the academic gifted program, always advancing past so many students throughout elementary, middle and high school, completing an undergraduate program, working, and now this? But I was determined to go to graduate school and was already accepted at University of Maryland for Education Policy and there was no way that I was giving up.
I got help with practicing memory skills and relearning a lot of basics lessons. I almost felt like a toddler again sometimes but if you knew me, I never took no for an answer. I would do everything I can, using one strategy, until it stops working. Instead of giving up, I would try another way. Summer 2007 I finally felt ready to start graduate school in College Park, MD. I had been living with my parents for over 5 years and couldn’t wait to be free again!
I was in UMD for a year and a half with varying grades and finally realized that I had serious trouble with writing skills. Any major in social sciences requires a lot of reading and writing and I was completely unaware of the severity of the surgery when it came to academics. The neurologist told me I would forget most of what I learned in school but my mind was so focused on “curing” the seizure disorder that I didn’t pay enough attention to the side effects. UMD finally sent me an email stating that they were having my status as dismissal from the administration, which of course infuriated me. I made an appointment with the legal office and it turns out, they had sent me a letter warning me after my first semester, but it was returned to them. Not only that, but the address it was mailed to lacked my apartment number to begin with. Basically the Admissions Office and the Graduate Department of Education were having trouble communicating, so as opposed to quietly leaving the University, I was, basically myself.
I read into the University’s policies regarding leaving and ended up becoming my own lawyer. I sent them professional emails clearly stating how it is their requirement to make sure I was aware of my status regarding the situation. Seeing that the mail was returned to their office, they were fully aware that I was never notified of my academic status. Lucky for me, they decided to change my status to my leaving the program as opposed to being dismissed by them.
Moving back to Pennsylvania, as opposed to being disappointed or depressed, I decided to simply be myself and find another way. I started taking writing classes at the local community college, especially since that was the main problem. Knowing myself as a perfectionist, even the professor was amused at how diligent and devoted I was to getting an A in the class. Once again I applied for a graduate school and worked during the waiting period to hear back from universities in the area.
In the process of all this, I met someone…..but we would end up going through hell thanks to a few specific people…..
