Discover Who You Are

       We begin any journey with a sense of unease, nervousness, and agitation for what lies ahead, whether it be the changes we must face or the great and mysterious unknown which exists in this big ‘ole world. Yet as our adventure comes to a close, we are filled with an overwhelming amount of joyous energy and rejuvenated confidence in our own selves for being a part of something which can only be defined as purely amazing.

       It is difficult to say in mere words the extent to which I have loved my experiences the past few months in Scotland. I am blown away at how spectacular and magnificent and truly awe-inspiring this great country is and deeply saddened to be leaving my newfound home. It has been a long journey, no doubt, but worth every minute of it.

       And so, as I write my final words of advice to all ye wee travelers out there in the world while I am laying down in my comfortable bed back home in good ole New York, I urge each of you to complete the most rewarding task any person on this Earth could do while on an adventure: discover who you are.

       I can say without a doubt in my mind that I am not the same person I was three and a half months ago. I was filled with a sense of uneasy confidence in myself and unaware of how much beauty and life and excitement there is in this world. Yet now, I feel as if I could take the world by storm. My confidence is overflowing in the knowledge that one day, I will succeed in traveling the world, seeing new and thrilling and different places to challenge my mind and excite my soul. As humans, we are constantly distracted within our lives, witnessing events with a narrow vision and focusing only on the small things that matter throughout our everyday lives. Yet if we can reach beyond that, if we can see into the distance and take that one momentous step, there is no stopping us.

 
       I now know who I am, what I can still become, and what I want to see myself as. I want to be able to look at a series of photos when I am old and wrinkled and be able to remember and feel every single emotion I felt when that photo was taken. I want to be able to look at a photo of Glencoe and remember my trip to the Isle of Skye and the feelings of amazement and overwhelming awe at the great beauty of Scotland for the first time. I want to be able to see and photo of my great friends while here and remember the nights we spent in pubs and bars, getting to know one another so well that we became, in our special and unique way, a family. These moments helped me to discover who I am and I cannot express in words the immense joy I have for knowing this.

       A journey has one purpose, one underlining meaning which stands true no matter what: helping us to find ourselves. Throughout our daily lives, there is so much that goes on around us that we sometimes find it hard to focus on ourselves. So I now challenge you, my dearest readers, to fight these distractions and take that leap- endeavor into an adventure to discover yourself and feel these emotions of great content and fulfillment that I do. Every moment of my study abroad experience was an absolute blast and I would take nothing back, because through all the nervousness and agitation, all the laughter and chatter, all the dancing and fun, and all the smiles and tears of joy, there stands one truth which will never go away, one truth which reassures me now and for every moment of the rest of my life that I have discovered myself in the absolute best way possible, one truth which I will forever remember in my heart:

       I have had one hell of a good time.