From a very young age I had a desire to travel the world and to explore new places. I've always been interested in learning about the history of other cultures. I knew that wherever my life took me and whatever career path I chose that I would make time to see the world. To no surprise, when it came to college I moved over a thousand miles from home and declared my major as international business.

The title itself implies travel, and I have all intentions of studying abroad at some point during my years at university. Lately though, there has just been one thing holding me back and that is the threat of terrorism.

Us millennials have grown up with terrorist attacks as a scary frequent occurrence. In the more recent years attacks are happening around the world every couple months. Beginning with 9/11, one of the worst attacks on the United States, and as recently as this past week with the attack at the Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, our generation has seen its fair share of tragedies at the hands of terrorists.

Now more than ever threats are at an all time high, making it intimidating to those looking to travel internationally, especially a young college student like myself. The constant threat of danger is discouraging to those who once dreamt of visiting the Eiffel Tower in Paris or touring the Colosseum in Rome.

Although I have accepted the idea that there will always be bad people trying to disturb the peace, I will not stop living my life. I intend to study abroad and travel anywhere else I may desire, even amid this terror crisis. I will not let ISIS or any other extremist group prevent me from pursuing my dreams. It would be easy to simply give in to the threat of danger and spend the rest of my life in one place because that is the safe thing to do. The goal of these terrorist groups is to place fear in the our lives and to disrupt our peace and freedom, but I will not allow this to happen.

A terror attack could happen at any place at any time. We must always be aware of our surroundings and be on the lookout for any threat of danger. The point I'm trying to make is that I refuse to change my lifestyle due to the actions of some extremist groups. Such groups have already brought harm to so many and disrupted so many lives. I am not going to allow them to succeed by missing out on some of most beautiful things that this world has to offer. Travel is important to me and it's not something I am willing to give up due to terrorism.

The attack in Manchester is tragic. My thoughts and prayers go out to all the victims and their families. The war on terror is catastrophic and too many lives have been lost. As a young adult seeking to travel the world, I refuse to live in fear due to terrorism. I will go on with my life and follow my dreams. I will keep my eyes open and be on alert but I will not hold back because of fear. I refuse to let the terrorists win.