What's Next?

Today I have been reflecting a lot about the direction of my life.  We spend years of our educational life preparing for the steps ahead.  In middle school they tell us we need to study hard because High School will be harder and we need to be ready.  Then as we approach High School Graduation we are encouraged to apply for college and further our education.  Again they try to prepare us for the college workload and for the steps we need to take to be successful.  Then we enter college and we are faced with thousands of options.  Our future seems un-limitless and full of so many majors our head could spin.  Then you blink and it is your senior year.  You are excited and hopeful, everything you've worked hard for over the past four years is coming to end.  We look for internships, jobs, Grad Schools and other things to get us a step into the real world.  But this time it is different than High School.  If you're lucky you have an amazing advisor, parents and friends who are here to support and encourage you; though some are not as fortunate.  Yet for all of us we are faced with the same thing, we cannot have our hands help as we venture out of the safety of our universities.  We no longer can redly rely on others to make our decisions for us.  This seems like a harsh reality, but it is the same thing millions before us have gone through and they have survived.  As I reflect over the reality that is setting in, that I won't be waking up next year with my biggest responsibility making it to class and being an active participant, I am reminded I still have an entire world open to me.  It is possible that some of us will not be using our majors, and it might seem like a waste of four years, but I can guarantee that it will not be.  College has allowed me to realize what I like and what I don't.  It has allowed me to grow great friendships and find value in every single one of them.  I've found a relationship with God that I can grow in and an amazing appreciation for those who have helped me on this journey.  Leaving college in a few short months has taught me things will not work out how you plan, no matter how much you plan.  You will indefinitely change your mind, how you feel about things, and be called to completely different opportunities.  The future is scary and it should be, if it was easy then it would not be exciting or challenging.  We learn and grow from events that make us step out of the box.  So just remember no matter where you are in life to let yourself be afraid, and excited.  Challenge yourself! If you're called to be a teacher, a writer, a mission worker, a CEO, a doctor or stay-at-home parent, do it; but don't let yourself get stuck, always let yourself grow.   So what I'm trying to say is it might not seem like we are prepared for this step in life, there is no check-list and it is scary, but that's ok, let it be.  Don't let a lack of a job or a plan stop you from being and living!