It's now, it's right now

I just turned in my application for graduation. Come May, I will be released into the wild. I hope it will feel that way...I don't want to feel constraint or confinement 7 months from now. 7 months. Actually that is still quite a ways away. A ways away. A great deal can happen in 7 months. Usually a great deal does. A great deal can happen in a moment. A great deal does.

I had a great chat with Dino Halloween night, after the usual movie bout on their couches, about his accident. His world changed in a split second. And in a state of shock, he still found a way to be humorous, while he teetered on the edge of life and death. A previous movie night entailed the movie The Butterfly Effect. This one definitely earned a spot in my respectable movies list. It was thought provoking: just another reminder that life is occurring now and every decision, every THOUGHT effects the next and therefore the rest of one's life.

I had a conversation the other day with an elderly man. He was exhibiting a table at a recent conference I attended. We talked about the stages of life and he informed me that though he loved his life at my age, he was so happy to be 80 years old and would not choose to be my age again. Life is tough at this age, he recalled. Though it is beneficial to have the world at your fingertips, it can be very overwhelming to face the endless opportunities possible to you everyday. We talked about how we don't get much practice making many choices before we are bombarded with them in our early 20s; or at least we do not discuss this situation as it approaches, so we are not aware that the smaller choices we are making before becoming an adult are good practice for the very important decisions one will make in the future. When we both had to go about our day, he let me CHOOSE any little treasure off of his table. I now have a t-shirt that reads Citizen of the World and features 100s of flags from many nations.

I was at a conference for International Educators. I felt like a little kid at a candy store for the two days I attended. Many opportunities to be employed in areas that cater to my interests: international relations, cultural education and understanding, a more interconnected globe, travel, advising, leading, variety, community...
I am making connections, they tell me. My name and face are known, which is the most beneficial strategy for career advancement in this field. That and passion as well as ambition. Those they assume I have, as I have gotten my name and face out there.