It is more than scary to look forward and see an absense of everything you currently know and are grounded in. The four years at UW allowed me to shape the world around me, and the world in turn shaped who I became. Now it is time to start it all over. Well, not quite. Everytime I get worried about what the future holds, I remember my journey. I am not starting again, I am taking everything I have gathered and learned these short four years with me, leaving me with a confidence that is unparalleled by my feelings at any other time in my life. I take the step, I trust the skills, lessons, people, mistakes, and failures to hold me up and keep me moving forward. My portfolio exists so I cannot forget this journey, so that I will not go blindly forward into the dark without remembering that my way is being lit from behind. Ready, set, jump. I am taking at least one gap year to pursue research in Seattle, and then I will be applying to graduate programs to find a new location and new set of research questions that will kickstart my next journey. I am excited for all the opportunities I have coming in the future, and I will embrace them head-on. |