All my life growing up, I was constantly asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” As kids we would consistently give answers like “an astronaut” or “a ballerina”, maybe “a NASCAR driver”. The possibilities were endless for what a 6 year old could come up with. By middle school, they begin to take us more seriously, as do we with the same question. Answers became “a lawyer” or “a doctor”. Still endless possibilities. Now that I am approaching the end of high school, I am asked the similar question, but this time it seems to matter the most. Where do I want to go. What do I want to do. I think back to wanting to be a lawyer, a physical therapist, or an athletic trainer. What made me change my mind? Now asked that question, I respond with an easy reply, “a dental hygienist”. But is it easy? I constantly tell myself, yes, this is what I want to do when I go to college, but am I always going to be telling myself this? The future is unknown. We don’t know what will exactly happen next year, next week, or even tomorrow. Life is too short to make big decisions quick and easily, and that’s why you have 4 years in college to get that figured out.

The future is scary. I will give you that. I don’t know what I will be able to do without having the ability to call my mom when I forget something at home and I need her to bring it to me, or when I’m sick and I need her to comfort me. I guess it’s all a part of growing up, and something everybody experiences in life, but I’m not going to lie, I’m scared to death. But then again, since everybody experiences it in their lives, it won’t be the end of the world for me.

Next year will be extremely different for me, but I think I’m ready to take on the challenge. High school was a relaxer for me, where I could play the sports I love, and spend school hours with my friends. Now, I won’t be able to play these sports to the same competitive level as high school, and I won’t be going to school with my old friends, but I will get the chance to play inner mural sports, and even make new friends. College is a way of starting over, and I am ready for a fresh new start.

Life will take you where you need to go, even when you least expect it. I have learned that there is nothing to have fear of in the future, but rather to stay focused on the present and of what is important right now. Someone once said, “Greet the future with anticipation. Dream big and work hard. Remember your roots and manners, and always remember the way home.”