Despite Loss, Tori Coded

TW: miscarriage

It has been quite the year for me since International Women’s Day last year. I landed my first software engineering role at an amazing company. I got married. I got pregnant, twice. I experienced loss. I moved to a new state and, like everyone else, I have had to navigate living through a global pandemic. It has been a roller coaster of a year, to say the least.

Prior to losing my great grandfather to COVID and having a miscarriage, I was creating a lot of content here on DEV but have been unable to find the motivation to do so since my world kind of turned upside down. I honestly did not know if I would even muster up the energy to write this post, but this is something I have done every year since I started my journey into tech and I did not want to tarnish that, so...

Here I am to say that despite everything that has happened over the last year, I have continued coding. I continue to strive to gain as much knowledge and experience as I can in everything that I do. I choose to make the most of every situation. I continue to be vocal about my pain and loss in order to help comfort anyone who has to go through a similar experience. Last but not least, I continue to feel incredibly grateful to have ended up at a company where I feel valued and safe as a woman engineer.

Feel free to check out my FireHydrant spotlight for International Women's Day where I answer a few questions such as important lessons I have learned and advice that I have for women wanting to break into tech.

Note: This post's cover image comes to you from Static Peak hike in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming.

Comments

[Sylwia Vargas]

Here I am to say that despite everything that has happened over the last year, I have continued coding. I continue to strive to gain as much knowledge and experience as I can in everything that I do. I choose to make the most of every situation. Last but not least, I continue to feel incredibly grateful to have ended up at a company where I feel valued and safe as a woman engineer.

This is such a meaningful paragraph.

I’m so sorry to read that this year has been so tough for you on top of the usual 2020 turmoil. I really wish that 2021 will bring only good news and delightful surprises.

Thank you for sharing.

[Gracie Gregory (she/her)]

There is so much strength in your vulnerability, Tori. Thank you for sharing and for continuing to code. I'm so glad you have a team that supports you.

[BekahHW]

So proud of you, Tori <3