Growing up, adults constantly asked me what I wanted to be when I "grew up." To be quite frank, I did not know what I wanted to do for the rest of my life when I was in elementary, middle, and even the majority of high school. At the time of writing, I will be graduating high school this Friday on May 25, 2018, and I will be attending the University of West Georgia to study Mass Communications with a focus in Journalism.

Although I now have a clear goal for my future, I had no idea what I wanted to do after high school until the end of my junior year. Although I didn't realize it until the summer before my senior year, the path I am on now started at the beginning of my sophomore year of high school.

On the first day of school my sophomore year, I ventured to Mr. Spencer's English class and I immediately knew that he was different than most teachers that I had had up until that point. Mr. Spencer spoke to his students as if we were adults, challenged us to grow, and created a classroom environment that allowed us to respectfully challenge his and other student's ideas. Mr. Spencer noticed I had a knack for writing and told me about The Prowler, the school's high school newspaper. I applied to be on the paper and conducted an interview with Mr. Spencer and I began my journey with journalism the following year.

I consider my first year on The Prowler to be a below average one. At the time, I considered journalism to be just a class that I was taking. I thought it was fun, but I didn't see it as a career opportunity. Towards the end of the school year, I started developing a passion for it. That passion was further developed when Mr. Spencer told the newspaper staff about an internship opportunity at a local newspaper. At first, I was reluctant, but I eventually decided to participate in the internship which would eventually change my life.

During my time with Fayette News, the newspaper at which I interned, I further developed my writing and interviewing skills. Being able to immerse myself in a real journalism setting and experience truly allowed me to discover that journalism is a good fit for me. I truly enjoy going out, interviewing people, and telling their stories. Journalism has allowed me to rediscover my passion for writing and to further develop various skills I can apply to different aspects of my life.

Journalism has helped me out in many ways, and I am forever grateful for it.