This past semester has been one of the busiest of my life.

Just like my junior year of high school, my junior year of college has made sure to give me a swift kick in the pants at least three times a week. Between managing the Club Powerlifting team, working two on-campus jobs, taking a full course load, applying for summer internships, and investigating grad schools, it was nonstop from the very first day. The end of the semester showed no signs of stopping.

In February, I was notified that I had been accepted into the NYU Summer Publishing Institute program for the summer of 2019. I was elated...until I realized that this would mean I had five days at home before I would leave. I wasn't too bummed, but I started to feel like I was on a path to overwhelming myself.

However, that would not be new territory for me. Like the stubborn young woman that I am, I continued on my path to visit the land of the ancestors that gave me those very stubborn tendencies: Scotland.

Meagan Pusser

If you know me at all, you know that I am very much a literature nerd. With that in mind, it is no wonder that I have been longing to take another literature-themed Maymester course since last summer. Although I was exhausted and extremely jet-lagged, I was ready for my next adventure the exact moment I stepped off of that return flight from Scandinavia.

Yet again my stubbornness has brought me to a land of stress and excitement. Finding out that I was a junior marshal this spring was a delight; I had always wanted that when I was a junior in high school and I did not have the class rank to achieve my goal. Now that I was in college, I was so happy that I had "redeemed" myself with the honor.

What I did not consider was the fact that this meant I would not only miss my best friend's graduation ceremony back home, but that I would have to pack my entire dorm room into boxes and pack for a two-week trip all while taking finals, spending time with all of the people I will not see until the fall, and tending to junior marshal duties.

Meagan Pusser

Needless to say, it continued to be a very busy semester with no promise of slowing down into the summer.

While the chronic homebody part of me wants to complain about being away from the comfort of my home town, friends, and family, the increasingly ambitious explorer part is dying to get back out and find the next big adventure. She knows that staying in one place is not going to help me very much in this part of my life. No matter how much I think I have everything figured out, I am still knee-deep in the process of trying to decode the set of interests, hobbies, and skills that will ultimately become my "adult life".

It's terrifying to think that I still have a long road ahead of me before I can settle into that comfortable space of being an independent adult. I have always been fond of routines, so changes have always made me increasingly uncomfortable, especially changes in location. As I mentioned before, I have always been a homebody. Having the comfort of my own space puts me at ease and feels the most productive to me so, naturally, moving around has been a major source of stress for me lately.

However, no matter how much I may hate hopping around, spending time doing one thing or another when I'd rather be doing nothing at all, but becoming uncomfortable is the biggest part of growth. Now, if a thorough analysis of J.M. Barrie's "Peter Pan" has taught me anything, it's that refusing to grow up can be as dangerous as losing the complete innocence and wild imagination of childhood. That kind of stagnation prevents you from appreciating your life and all those in it for what they are worth.

I, for one, am determined that the purpose of life is to enjoy what God has given me and, as a result, I have to feel a little uncomfortable from time to time.

Meagan Pusser

I have been blessed to have all of these opportunities at such a young age and I am determined to enjoy them for what they have taught me about the world and myself.

Even if my junior year was stressful, I have enjoyed the fruits of my labors in good grades, leadership positions, and several projects that I am very proud of. In the end, Scotland was an amazing adventure that taught me how to be a little more adaptable. If nothing else, the past month has helped me perfect the art of packing the day before a trip.

For now, I will look back on these adventures fondly, but I will also look forward to my studies at NYU as my next big adventure.

Meagan Pusser