Setting Out

If you would have asked me during the summer before entering college how I felt about studying abroad, I would have said something along the lines of:

 

"Never in a million years..."

 

"I could never be that far away from home by myself!"

 

"No way. Not me."

 

I don't know what flipped the switch. It may have been my experience in my first year of college at UC-Irvine that made me reconsider, but I can't say for sure. All I know is that my freshman year, (though teaching me a number of other important lessons) reminded me that it's perfectly okay to not have all of the answers in life.

 

As an undecided/undeclared student, the whole "not knowing what the heck I want to do in life" thing pretty much sums up my experience. I spent all 3 quarters of my freshman year taking diverse G.E. classes, in hopes of landing in one that would magically open my eyes to my destiny...or preferred career choice or something like that. The end of my first year had me worrying...what if I never figure out what I want to do in life? What if I'm not happy with what I pick? What do I even like? 

 

All of these unanswered questions had me in a panic. After doing some intensive "soul searching," as they call it, I discovered one important detail about myself. I find myself and who I am as a person most often when I'm lost. Not knowing where to go, what to do, or what is next (though terrifying) is exciting in itself. After enduring a whole year of not knowing anything about what major I wanted to pick, I had finally grown accustomed to being lost, and was fully ready to embrace it.

 

I extensively searched website after website looking for the perfect location, school, and program to study abroad in. I finally landed on one that I could not refuse, and so here I begin my journey- at the prestigious London School of Economics. Summer never looked so good.