Midnight Confessions of an MBA Mom

It's 4:28 am and I am feeding Leo…again. Mind is hazy, body exhausted, but I’ve never been happier.


Amid the nebulous thoughts and consistent exhaustion that come with midnight feeding I often find some clarity and gratitude. Gratitude for this magical little being I hold in my arms who’s changed my life forever.  Gratitude for the lessons, friendships and memories of the past two years that will mark the years to come. And gratitude that somehow these two important steps in life - becoming a mom and getting my MBA - intersected at this fortuitous time. Yes, sitting through Damodoran’s Valuation final at eight and half months pregnant last semester was not exactly pleasant. And running back and forth to school to nurse a newborn between Restructuring and New Media this semester was not exactly ideal… but somehow it worked! And as I look back on the last three months, and the last two years, I know it was meant to be this way.


In fact, being a grad student and a new mom are actually quite similar. ... We both pull frequent all-nighters and are relatively functional even under limited sleep conditions.  We both use bottles to soothe cry-babies and recognize that s#@t happens, often. And most importantly we both find ourselves at this point of inflection in our lives full of reflection and big dreams for the future.


I look down at Leo’s sleepy face glowing with the reflection of my laptop and think of his future.  I know Leo will grow up to become a wonderful man with a big heart (just like his dad) but I also hope that he “inherits” many of the qualities of my fellow Sternies who I know will inspire him as he grows up…
I hope Leo is a great dancer like Sophie Scharf and Jason Stokar and incredibly bright like Maria Clara Aristizabal and Gopi Unnithan.


I hope he can party like Matt Coakley and Felipe Ramos yet be studious like Anthony Pirraglia.


I hope Leo is a great performer like Brendan Murnane and a true entertainer like Fernando Castro…  as cool a techie as Juston Payne, as illustrious a chef as Cristina Muguruza, and as sophisticated an investor as Sven Karisson.


I hope he is as sweet as Meg Butler and Angel Davis and as fashionable as Jonathan Kiman and JG Ayodele… that he will make people laugh like Jordi Monso and have as many groupies as MBA Jam. I hope he is a great storyteller like Nicolas Bahamon and a talented writer like Caroline Schimmelbusch… an amazing photographer like Emily Cangie and Shanif Dhanani and as entrepreneurial as Samir Mirza and Ernesto Vargas.


I hope he is as great and patient a teacher as Professor Silber and as good a listener as Beth Briggs…a true visionary like Dean Henry and a charismatic leader like Dean Fraser.

I think of all the things I wish for him in life and realize that they are not distant from what I wish for you, my classmates – a life filled with love and happiness, passion and purpose, and yes, maybe one day, little Leo’s of your own.



With love,

Mama Bueno