This one is for you all, the small town people that have bigger dreams than even you probably intended for yourself.

When people ask you where you are from, you have to tell them the closest university, closest known city, closest attraction and then add the “ it's a little east of that” or you add the “I'm about an hour from there..” Yes. I get it. That is me. Guess what? It doesn't matter.Just because you are from that small town, it doesn’t mean that you have to stay there forever. There is an entire world out there to see. Travel it. Explore it. AND if you feel like you need to move there, if you feel like someone or something needs you to be there, you go. Go and don’t let anything hold you back.

For your entire life you have been told to follow your dreams, to dream big and to not let anything hold you back. You have been told that the world is yours and then all of a sudden you are standing in front of your family telling them your goals, your dreams, and everywhere you want to go and they look at you like you are crazy... I've been there. So please listen to a few things I have to say, and trust me when I tell you that it may seem hard now, but it will be SO, SO worth it in the long run.

Here are a few things that you always have to remember when you decide to stand up for yourself and chase after everything you've always wanted. You'll have to remember that your family will love you no matter what. That is one of the most important things to remember when you sit down and think about the next adventure you want and have to take. Your grandfather tells you, “that's foolish” when you tell him you want to move halfway across the country, just to work. Even though he will still love you. Do you have the parents that tell you that you are making a mistake and ask you what you will do when something happens back home and it takes 18 hours to get home? Please know that it is okay. Know that things happen and regardless if you are two hours or twenty hours away that you have to live your life. You have to grow up too.

Your parents and your family members have already got to experience the things that they wanted and they got to build a life of their own, that’s how we got here. And now, it is your turn. So when you see that application that could change your world forever, you better apply. When you are looking at your dream schools and wondering, "what’s next, where can I turn and where do I go?" As you applied, you then, have to wait on the response not just from the application but you wait on the response from God. If he didn’t want you in that situation that you are in, he would not put you in it.

So, as you take your leap of faith and you start to question what is going to come next, take a step back and pray. Know that the response to the application that you just submitted, the text you sent, the prayer you prayed, the phone call you made, the interview that you took, know that the response will be exactly what you needed because everything works the way God needs it too. As your acceptance or denial comes, be thankful, be happy and know how blessed you are because it was meant to happen. And if you ended up being accepted, please know that some doors may close, but the ones that will open with the opportunity that is given to you, will be so much more than all of your dreams..

Dream bigger than big, pray hard, and ALWAYS remember the road that leads you home...