In April 2004, I, a 13 year old girl at the time, saw the trailer for a movie called "13 Going on 30" which starred Jennifer Garner and Mark Ruffalo as the leads of the Fantasy Rom-Com. After seeing the trailer I told my mom that I would love to watch that movie. Why? I don't know. Something about the film seemed to drag me to it. Yes, Jennifer and Mark are a couple of my favorite actors, and yes, I love Rom-Coms, but the possibility of going to the future to see what your life could be like and what could've been was intriguing to my 13 year old mind.

As I watched the film my mind began to race, what would my thirties be like? What field had I finally chosen from all of my dream jobs I had as a kid? What would I look like? Would I be a good person? What path did my journey take? The prospect of getting a glimpse at my future was slim to none, because in reality we don't know which path we choose as we kept on growing.

I opened doors that presented amazing opportunities from spending a while working in the Smithsonian Museum in D.C. at 14 years old with other members of my tribe to help and preserve indigenous communities cultures by photographing, documenting, and uploading it to an official website, to traveling all over the states and a couple of countries that I had only ever dreamt about. But I had opened doors that led me to hanging around unsavory characters that ultimately betrayed me in every way imaginable and down darker psychological issues before I ultimately ended up in years of therapy.

While 90% of the film, 13 Going on 30 was romantic and comedic, that other 10% ended up showing the down side of getting to your 30s, it showed only one path out of the many. What if Jenny didn't try to be one of the other girls? What if she had stayed with Matty at the beginning? Would she have ended up the same? So, here I am, after only a few days of turning 29 contemplating on how I thought I was going to turn out like like when I was a kid.

I didn't become an archaeologist nor do I live in New York City. I never became a chef while living in France in a flat above a bookshop. I didn't become an animal rescuer living on a large property for all of my animals to be able to run freely. But, I got to travel overseas and meet amazing people. I got to be a traveling medical staff member and traveled around the country. And I just celebrated my twenty-third anniversary of meeting m best friend and sister. Not only that but I've been given the gift of writing, providing me opportunities to grow as a person, to help others through my work, and create a safe world within my books that is directed to both kids and adults.

So, as I inch towards the cross line of turning 30 I feel...accomplished and content with how I feel with how everything is coming together in its own timing and becoming a reality for me. Soon I'll graduate with my degree, and leaving the medical field and switch to the Special Education field and business aspect of it. Because I have finally figured out how I want to help kids the most, writing books for them while teaching them, creating a safe haven, and develop an individualized structure whilst building a community structure such as a garden.