Grad School

Wow...so it has been a little while. At the time that I wrote my last post I had no idea where or if I would be going to grad school. I was still kind of secretely holding out hope that i would be accepted to BYU. The future seemed so uncertain. And though I may not have openly admitted it, I was scared. More so than I can ever remember, but part of that is likely my sketchy memory. I had overwhelming feelings of doubt and inadequacy that I generally tried to ignore. I felt as though everything that I had worked for in my undergrad was not good enough and at times I even started to question if I was good enough to make the dream that I had for the last three years come true. Then I took one of the biggest leaps of faith I can remember ever taking. Some people thought I was crazy, but looking back now I can see that it really was a turning point for me. My perspective started to change and I was suddenly much more open to following God's plan for my life instead of mine.

Well here I am, close to six months later. The future still seems so uncertain and I still get kind of scared every once in a while, but I have never felt more right about where I am and what I am doing with my life. I am a student at the University of Utah. I know, who would have thought, right? But honestly I couldn't be more excited about it. I already am so grateful for the friendships I am beginning to develop with people I would have never gotten to know otherwise. And the career path I am on leads me to someplace amazing. I have heard so many times that communication and language are the essence of what makes us human. To think that I will have a opportunity to help people communicate, to engage with other people, to become more "human" is incredible. You can cure someone of an infectious disease, help them learn to walk again following a traumatic accident, or help them get a job to support themselves, but without communication, a means to relate to and interact with people they care about and love, all those other things mean very little. I am getting to my destination in a different way than I would have thought just a year ago, but I am excited about where I am and I cannot wait to see what the future has in store for me.

Freedom and the Open Road

Monday I decided it was the perfect day to awaken my bike Comet from his long winter hibernation and expose him to the joys of spring. The months of our separation made me almost forget how much I love him. Something about the feeling of the wind in my face and my hair blowing behind me makes me forget about any problems I may have. A quick ride on Comet immediately makes the world a little brighter.

As I rode along the Provo River trail, I had some time to think. I tried to take everything in - the sound of the water, the view of the snow-capped mountains, the smell of the river, the couple sitting on a log by the river, engrossed in conversation, the teenager I passed on his skateboard...and suddenly, it hit me; Provo has really become home for me. I still love Riverton and will always claim it as my hometown, but in so many ways Provo has become my home away from home, and no longer just because it happens to be the city that BYU is located in. I have fallen in love with so many things about Provo: the nearby mountains, the families that I've gotten to know through my job, the frozen yogurt bars popping up on every corner, the signs advertising Bridal Fairs and diamond ring sales, the local businesses to help you stock up on food storage or put your 72 hour kit together, and the general sense of service and family values prevalent in the community.

I continued my ride along the route that Courtney and I took several times as kids (which by the way, not sure how I climbed that hill as a 10-year-old - I can barely do it as a 21-year-old) and I realized part of why I love Provo. In a sense, it represents my child-like innocence and hope. As a 10-year-old the world was at my fingertips. I could accomplish anything. As I ride the streets of Provo with Comet I am taken back to this part of my childhood, and I know, once again, that I can overcome any obstacle.

My view as I rode down the hill toward Riverwoods (shockingly enough no one was harmed in the taking of this picture):

Dear Grad Schools,

I've been thinking. We really should work things out between us. Maybe this month could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship. One lasting approximately two years. I anxiously await your response.

Yours Truly,

Kristen