With the arrival of the New Year, it is the perfect time to reflect on what has brought us to where we are now and what lies on the road ahead. It is a good time to make peace with ourselves and to remember that "regrets are just lessons we haven't learned yet." Embrace all of the mistakes we have made and approach the New Year as a fresh start, an opportunity to do what we might have been afraid to do in the past, and a time to step boldly into our own futures.
I will be returning to The College of Saint Catherine next semester as a Senior, and while this year may mark the end of one phase of my life, it will also be a time of looking ahead and really choosing the direction that my life will take me. Interning for The Purple Crayon factory has been instrumental in helping me set my course towards a life as a therapist. While I have learned many invaluable lessons in college classrooms, it is another thing entirely to meet people who are really working in the health and wellness industry, to see where they work, or more importantly, to learn why they do what they do. I believe most would agree that it has to do with a desire to help others improve their quality of life, to spread joy, and to reassure people of the power they have. I have always known that I wanted to offer people this kind of service, but only a few years ago, this would have seemed like an impossibility. When I was supposed to enter my junior year of high school, a series of bad experiences led me to choose not to return to school. Even after my life began to improve, I floundered and felt like I had very few opportunities available to me and even less direction in my life. I truly believed that I would never be able to pull myself out of the stereotypical role of "high school drop out." Obtaining my GED gave me no sense of accomplishment because I was still certain that I would never be able to reach my goals.
Shortly after I turned eighteen, I had something like an epiphany. I realized that, in spite of the temptation to point fingers and place blame, quitting school had ultimately been my choice. No one had gotten me into this mess but myself, and nobody but myself was going to pick me up and set me on my feet again. It was an unsettling feeling to realize that I was entirely on my own, but it also led me to feel empowered. If I was a victim of circumstance, it was because I had made the decision to be a victim. So, I became my own guardian angel. I took a monumental leap and decided to leave my home state of Arizona and come to the only place that was at all familiar. Minnesota was where I had been born, and it seemed like it would be the most appropriate place to be born again. With no real support and no set plan, I enrolled at a community college and gathered around me a network of caring people to help me on my way.Since then, my path has taken many more strange turns and the going hasn't always been easy, but four years later, I find myself on the precipice of graduating from a great college, armed with some amazing experiences that I can't wait to share with others. In my life, I've made many mistakes, and I've learned first-hand the value of a fresh start. A clean slate is something that is never given to you, it is a choice that must be made, a conscious decision to let go and to just jump right in to life. In the coming year, remember the importance of taking chances. You are the only person with the power to change your circumstances!
