There is a lot of talk in college about finding your passion - that one true interest in your life that you could pursue for the rest of your career and be happy. I find that I have multiple passions, and it's likely that many others do too. I have buried them before, only to rediscover them with fresh eyes. My passions have made me who I am today, and I hope to stick with them because they do make me happy. You should, too. No matter how impractical or niche your passion may seem, if it lights you up and makes you excited to be alive, it is worth something to you, and that's all that matters.

My first passion is archaeology. Antiquity. Ancient History. Whatever you want to call it, it makes me happy. There is something thrilling about finding artifacts that haven't been unearthed for hundreds or thousands of years that were once used regularly by a human community. Trying to imagine what life was like, trying to immerse myself in it, creates a childlike sense of wonder within me that, albeit naïve, is a fantastic feeling. Even though ancient life may not be as exciting as we make it out to be, I still find the similarities and differences among people now and people then fascinating.

This passion was especially present when I was pretty young, reading books about Ancient Egyptian tombs and mummies, Greek mythology, and the Pompeii tragedy. I continuously forget how much I love all of that until I'm reintroduced to it. Now, I hope to make it an academic pursuit. I'm so grateful for my archaeology class this semester that reminded me yet again how excited I am for this area of study.

My second passion is theater. Like archaeology, it periodically resurfaced throughout my life and reminds me why I loved it in the first place. Now, it's a steady extracurricular activity, though I did briefly entertain the idea of minoring in theater. I don't think I would want to pursue theater as a career because I'm not quite that passionate about it. However, I still love to participate in it as often as I can manage. It has brought me to wonderful people and very memorable experiences that I won't forget in a hurry.

My third passion is tennis. This one has been steady throughout most of my life, but I feared my passion for it had been killed during high school. Following many unfortunate experiences and a coach who made it a source of emotional pain rather than joy, I was sure that I could never pick up my racquet again without the bad memories rushing back. I felt I could not play with confidence anymore. I felt that it was no longer my sport, even though I'd played it for the majority of my life. It was no longer healthy for me to even think about it.

But then I picked it back up this year. I played an intramural game. And then another. And I found that my coach had not destroyed this passion for me. He had not defeated me, and he would no longer bring negative association to a sport that had once been my escape. I began to rewrite those associative memories with positive ones - with playing with my Kappa sister, and with winning a later match with my boyfriend supporting me from the sidelines instead of my coach's watching eyes making me a nervous wreck. Playing with kind girls who were competitive but not too much so, and celebrating the match (won or lost) with positivity instead of nitpicking.

I have won back all three of my passions in college, and I consider myself very lucky. I have found what lights me up, and I will continue to pursue those things as long as life will let me. I have found my identity through these three passions, since I pursued them each at different parts of my life leading up to now.

I would encourage you to do the same. Find not just interests, but something that makes you feel alive and happy to be so. Once you find them, don't let go - keep them close to your heart.