Amman — Ten years ago, Salma, 30, was forced to drop out of her studies due to overwhelming circumstances, and life took her down a different path. She took on the responsibilities of a home, a husband, and children.
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Over time, she grew accustomed to putting off the idea of returning to university. "I always used to tell myself: I'll go back when my daughter is a bit older, when things get better, when I have more time... until one day I asked myself: when exactly is the right time going to come?"
That was a genuine moment of realization; she understood she might wait forever if she was searching for the perfect time, and that the right time isn't a day when responsibilities disappear or life becomes easier.
That day, Salma didn't dwell much on the difficulties: "I went and enrolled at the university, and told myself: I'll start, and everything will work itself out after that. And honestly, things turned out simpler than I imagined."
The start wasn't easy; she had to learn all over again, return to studying, writing, memorizing lectures, and preparing for exams, all while caring for her home and children. She moved between her responsibilities as a mother and a student, often feeling exhausted, but she wanted to prove to herself, before anyone else, that she was still capable of achieving what she wanted.
"Thank God, my hard work wasn't wasted. Every semester I was among the top students, and my name was always on the university's honor roll." These small achievements became a source of motivation, a message telling her: "You are capable, and every step you struggled through was worth it."
Today, four years later, Salma has graduated and discovered that the right time was the day she decided to begin.
A Passion Reignited After 28 Years
Does time hold power over passion? Do dreams end the moment a family is started and one becomes devoted to raising children? Rula, in her forties, answered these questions with bold decisions that upend the usual calculations of time and obligation, when she took the clear step of returning to university after a 28-year break.
Rula's academic dream wasn't born by chance but was an ambition that had accompanied her since childhood, when she excelled at school and gathered her classmates at home to give them tutoring sessions. But her family's financial circumstances at the time, combined with the traditional view that a woman's stability lies in her home and husband, forced her to postpone the dream after passing her high school exams. Rula got married, had children, and devoted herself to raising her three kids.
Long years passed, during which the children grew up and became independent, until an opportunity came Rula's way through a private job that allowed her to save enough for tuition fees. With exceptional courage, she pulled out her high school certificate, which she had kept since 1996, and headed to the university's admissions and registration office, fully convinced it was too late, only to receive the good news that the door of hope was still open to her.
Rula recalls the moment she walked into the classroom, saying: "I felt embarrassed in the first lecture, and thought I'd be the only older person among classmates my children's age, but I was surprised to find many students my age and older, which immediately lifted the fear from my chest."
Today, as she goes through her second university year, Rula sends a heartfelt message to every woman hesitant to take the step: "Don't think the train has left. The train only stops if you're the one who wants to stop it." She adds: "Arriving late is better than never arriving at all, and every step you take today is a genuine start toward a new goal."
A Dream That Held On for 36 Years
In 1988, "Rami" finished high school, and went straight into work due to circumstances that forced the decision on him. But there was a voice inside him saying this wasn't everything he wanted, and that the dream of attending university was still waiting.
Rami tried to satisfy his passion through educating his children, until he saw them holding degrees in engineering, law, and master's programs. But the flame inside him never went out, and he kept feeling that the dream would only be complete if he lived it himself.
After finishing 20 years of service, Rami carried his passion, put his affairs and paperwork in order, and finally walked through the university's doors after a 36-year gap.
Speaking candidly about his initial hesitation, Rami says: "At first I was embarrassed about how society would see me... going gray and still picking up the book! But I found nothing but encouragement and pride from my family and those around me, which let me take that first step." He continued that his fear didn't end there, but followed him to the classroom door: "I won't hide it, I was afraid my memory had declined with age, and even more afraid of how the students and professors would look at me... that they'd look at me with surprise or condescension." But the fears quickly faded and expectations shifted: "The professors and students treated me with respect and reverence, and strangely, the students treated me like a fellow twenty-year-old. They dropped the formalities and would casually say to me, for example: 'Rami, Rami, where's so-and-so?' Or we'd meet in the cafeteria and chat, to the point I forgot the years between us."
The four years passed for Rami like "a blink of an eye," culminating in an honorable graduation with excellent grades, proving that passion doesn't retire, and that age is just a number against the will to learn.
Living Role Models and Overcoming Challenges
On the social dimensions of this phenomenon, sociology specialist Dr. Hussein Al-Khuza'i explains that society's view of an ambitious person who carries the responsibility of caring for a family is positive, and is met with support and admiration, given their exceptional ability to precisely balance family obligations with academic pursuit. Al-Khuza'i notes that the path isn't free of challenges, and some critical opinions may question their ability to balance family and study, or accuse them of prioritizing their ambition at the expense of family responsibilities.
Al-Khuza'i continues that this is where a self-aware, success-driven character emerges, one that doesn't stop at setbacks or the voices trying to discourage it, and takes a firm stand to prove that giving isn't something to be divided.
Resuming education turns a person into a success story and a living, inspiring model for both family and community, as when children see a parent defying circumstances and prevailing for their ambition, they form a practical understanding of persistence and passion for life.
From the angle of human development and life skills, life skills trainer Doaa Abu Obeid explains that the decision to return to studying goes beyond obtaining an academic qualification, becoming "a declaration of return to the self." After years of being absorbed in family responsibilities, this step gives the father or mother a deep sense of self-efficacy and a renewed psychological identity, shifting their view of themselves from helplessness and postponement to confidence and initiative.
The trainer stresses that the real impact extends to the heart of the family and surrounding community, as the success of this stage depends on conscious dialogue that distributes responsibilities without conflict between "I" and "we." At that point, a father or mother sitting at a desk turns into "a living, inspiring model" of parenting, as children learn by example that passion has no age limit, and that responsibilities don't mean abandoning dreams, sending a message of hope to the surrounding community that it's not too late.
These inspiring human stories go beyond the bounds of academic achievement, forging a new concept of challenge and self-rediscovery at different, advanced stages of life, a challenge carrying a determination to leave a personal mark, and to break the fear of pursuing dormant experiences waiting to be fulfilled, ones that renew life and light up the future.
Resource: Al-Ghad. Reporting: Samar Khaled
