In ten years, where do you see yourself? Do you see yourself with your life together – married in a mansion with your spouse and two kids on your way to your annual cruise to the Bahamas? Or maybe your life is all you ever imagined – helping people every day as a nurse, working as an elementary school teacher, practicing law at a big firm in the city, or even fixing cars in a mechanic shop. All of these occupations are amazing, and maybe exactly what you want; however, what happened to your dream job you had as a child?

In elementary school, before reality hit you, your imagination was running wild. "I want to be a princess when I grow up," you would tell your parents, or possibly a racecar driver was more of your thing. Whatever your dream was – no matter how outrageous it was – there is a high chance that your current dreams do not involve as much creativity. Instead of having the dream of becoming a celebrity, your future goals involve college then career or straight to the workforce.

When I was younger, I aspired to become a teacher – just like my mom. I would use her old books and worksheets in my pretend classroom where I taught my students daily. I do not know exactly when it occurred, but sometime between elementary school and now, I abandoned this dream. My dream shifted from becoming a teacher to getting accepted into a reputable college where I would find my path alongside other students who have the same objective as me – work hard in college to get hired after college. Throughout high school, my goals changed; however, college continued to be my dream.

You spend your entire life preparing for the future. From preschool to high school, each new grade is spent anticipating the next – a fifteen-year cycle that only ends once you are walking down an aisle accepting your high school diploma. My college admissions process can be easily defined as unconventional – I applied to twenty-four schools. The reason why is still uncertain to me – but the truth is – at the time I was uncertain. "What do you want to do? Who do you want to be? How do you want to live?" asked my relatives – questions that are impossible for a high school student who was only worried about passing AP Calculus and what I was wearing to Prom.

One may say I was lost, yet I know now that I was simply scared. Scared of rejection and failure. Scared of making the wrong decision. I was scared that my dreams were unattainable which is why on December 19th of my senior year – I was at a loss for words. I got into my "dream" school – everything I worked hard for paid off? It quickly fazed me that this university I spent high school dreaming about was not my dream at all, so like any common person, I found something else to dream about. Just a month later, I officially visited the first university I submitted an application to and began to formulate a new dream. This new dream was different than anything I had expected and yet is currently no longer a dream.

I was dreaming for years, but over the course of a little less than a year have understood that dreams are only the groundwork for reality. I am now living out my dream instead of merely imagining it in the confines of my head. I am going to class every day at what I would consider my dream school – walking from building to building, taking everything in. I am meeting new people with similar interests as me – becoming friends with people I never expected to know. I am doing everything I ever imagined and I understand that dreams are meant to change. My dreams are also meant to be fulfilled, and the only person who can do that is myself.

In high school, I was agonizing over my dreams and now understand that the best things in life do not come to those who wait but instead the best things in life come to those who do. Those people who walk to the dining hall at 1 am in a glue-stick costume. Those people who run around a residence hall with their friends in morph suits. Those people who get up every day with an open mind, excited to try new things and experience life to the fullest. Now I am taking action and carrying out my dreams.

Once I was dreaming and now I am doing. So dream big and work towards those dreams because, at the end of the day, the only way to live a life free of regrets is by doing anything and everything that your heart desires.