a time to celebrate! and a time to remember that i am 27, without a job, home, significant other, child, and with debt (really only a little debt so i can’t be overly melodramatic, even though i am trying for effect here).
before i dive into this post, i should say i’m actually perfectly content with where i am at to date (aside from the reality that i do look forward to holding an awesome job where i make a public health difference…i do believe the profession has an amazing capacity to make a difference). i should also say that i believe life has a way of sorting itself out at the rate life decides it should sort itself out, provided i’m doing the necessary leg work and all. please know, i’m quite happy and blessed.
so, graduation. these two years absolutely flew by. during orientation, dr. vena said we would be surprised by the amount we would change in these two years. he was correct. my proudest accomplishment, one that is tough to express in short, is how much i grew up during this time. i’ve always been the ‘good one’. the one who was mature for her age at 16. friends who i haven’t seen in years are still surprised if they see a beer in my hand or if i stay out past 10pm. (i like to run and i live in georgia. you let me know how well staying up late or drinking works for you when you plan to be done running before 7am, but whatever.) my point is that i believe i am mature. so what growing up did i need? well, aside from the belief that we are always learning (should we allow ourselves the opportunity), one of my biggest challenges has been confidence my decisions and my abilities. close friends are incredibly kind and sincerely don’t understand these insecurities; however, they exist. but here is the exciting part: somewhere in peru, i finally saw what my friends have always seen. i finally had the mental shift to actually stop second-guessing and feel autonomous over my future. in my time at uga i discovered that i sincerely believe in education (this doesn’t have to be higher education or even graduate school education, this is just what i did)…more so, i believe and value experiences that provide an opportunity to become more self-conscious about how ones lives. to expand knowledge and develop skills that allow us to make reasoned decisions because our worldview has been broadened. there are more areas of growth i could discuss; some are controversial and others still need refinement, but in short, i feel like i grew up. and this makes me proud.
graduation in and of itself was nice. i had lunch with my parents and brother at 5&10 and enjoyed one last meeting with all of my wonderful, and i mean wonderful, cohort friends.
brother made a cameo
lindsey and i walked to class together on the first day. really.
my favorite sara/h’s. they are really great.
and of course, my wonderful parents!
*readers should know that i often make grammatical errors in my blog. i’m trying this whole proofreading thing so hopefully the errors will drop in numbers. with that, i write conversationally and it’s far from perfect. i save that for papers. 
apologies.
