New Beginnings

Going away to college is one of the most challenging things a young adult can do. Especially when that college is a three hour flight away. As someone who is empowered and inspired by my family, moving away took a lot of courage. As a kid, I’d always sought “independence” and “freedom,” yet I wasn’t really sure what that looked like.

College, though, especially at a grand university like the University of Texas at Austin, is one of the most ambitious ways of finding out what exactly I was looking for. After just a few weeks at school, I already feel it. I don’t have any parents to turn to if I need help with dishes, cooking, or laundry, I have to reset who I’m friends with, and I have new goals to strive for.

I was never one for taking many risks. Playing it safe has taken me pretty far in life, and has taken me to places that I’m beyond proud of. Yet, now as a young adult, the cushion of safety that I could fall back on isn’t as firm as it used to be. If I want to be an artist, a storyteller, an inspiration, then taking risks is my only choice. And, for some reason, after just a couple weeks on campus, left to my own resources, I can already feel that necessity, that hunger, weighing over me.