Everyone always told me that high school would fly by. I never believed them, as I was sitting in my Algebra 1 class for the second time. The end of my four years at that school could not come fast enough. Then, one day, which seemed like it was out of nowhere, the last day of my senior year. I remember getting my cap and gown and being late to the rehearsal. It was a typical move by me, being late, that was what I was known for. So, it was all too fitting.

The summer after senior year of high school, I heard the same thing again, "college is going to fly by, have as much fun as you can!" I listened to their statements, having as much fun as I could, making memories with people that I would never forget (or maybe some would have to remind me of my memories) but nonetheless I had a good time. School was school, papers after papers after papers. I could not wait to be finished. I was losing motivation as the weeks of my last semester was coming to a close.

Here comes the “What are you going to do once you graduate?”, “Are you going to get your Masters?”, “Do you have any jobs lined up”. All I wanted to do was relax for a couple of weeks and not think about anything. I had just finished going to school for four years straight. I did not have summers off since I took summer classes (I transferred). I wanted to scream! After a while I thought to myself, maybe I should have interviews lined up, what am I going to do after the summer? I was starting to second-guess myself on my decision about taking off for the summer, which I thought I deserved it. I learned never to second-guess myself, you made the decision for a reason.

That being said, I realized I wanted to become an English teacher. I had graduated from my university with a degree in English so that was an achievable goal. Here’s the kicker, I had to go back to school to get my Teaching Certificate. It was a two-year program but it was for adults. Going back to school was a little tough at first but well worth it.

I found myself going back to the high school I couldn’t wait to get out of and started coaching. I was trying to put myself out there in case any job openings came up. There were a couple of job openings but I never seemed to get the job. I wanted to give up, there were many days I came home and just felt hopeless. I was getting down on myself thinking I would never get a permanent job. However, with friends and family motivating me, I just got back up on the horse and kept trying. Two years later, I am in a semi-permanent position with a promising job for next school year.

To say this has not been a long hard road, I would be lying. I struggled throughout my school years to get to where I am today. Every late night, tears, and struggles made me into the person I have become. My advice to anyone graduating school would be to not give up on your dreams. Your path may not be flat and straight, but you will get there eventually if you keep trying. Do not give up. Life has a funny way of working out just when you start to believe it never will.