My senior year of college I didn’t feel ready to enter the work world, and I had no clear picture of the job I wanted. Thinking to get clarity in the meantime, I decided to put the decision off for another year or two and go to grad school.
I remember being curiously unconcerned about details. I applied, got accepted, and even won a graduate assistantship that would cover my living expenses if I was frugal. That was the extent of my planning. I didn’t visit campus ahead of time, nor did I look for an apartment to rent.
A couple months before the fall semester started, I made one phone call to the department of journalism and asked the administrative assistant if she had any suggestions for how I would go about finding a place to live. Another student had just mentioned she needed a roommate, so there it was.
At the end of the summer, I headed off from Minnesota to Indiana with just me and my belongings packed in my car.
My younger self treated it as an adventure. I didn’t stress over the details, I trusted that I would be taken care of, and I knew it would work out in the end. And it did. That year was the most carefree and fun time of my life. My roommates were wonderful, and it was a good living situation. I loved the other graduate assistants in the department and we became a close-knit group of friends. After the rigor of my undergraduate program, the classes I took were easy, and I had plenty of time to relax and play.
This was a time of liminal space in my life. As I left the safe, comfortable confines of the small liberal arts college I attended to head out into the world, anything was possible. There were many unknowns. I still didn’t know what kind of job I wanted, and I didn’t waste time worrying about that. I lived in the moment.
My younger self was fearless and moved four states away on a whim. She was courageous and naive all at the same time. While I don’t wish away my life experience, I do admire her willingness to plunge headlong into the unknown.
Of course there were some bumps along the way, but it all worked out. One thing led to another and then another, and now here I am.
As I face a new liminal space in my life, I wish to connect with my younger self and source from her bravery and sense of adventure. May my fearless younger self be a source of support as I move forward.
This work is real, and it matters.
November 22, 2021