I can't really tell you why or where the dream began, but it all started with the idea of home.

Before I had any idea about the direction of my future, I knew that I wanted to find that perfect place. A place filled with love and warmth. A house that's sole purpose was to hold the pieces of my life and place me within the grasp of a community. An individual spot that would allow me to be a part of something greater.

As I began to get closer to choosing a career path, English Education stuck out in my mind. I loved working with people and had a strong desire to change the world. Not only could I achieve both of these in this career path, I could also stay in the place that made me who I am today. I loved everything about this home. I loved the people in this small community. I loved the idea of moving home and finding someone who loved it as much as me. I couldn't help but imagine the great things I could accomplish in my personal life and in the lives of others.

After starting college, I began to shift my views on home. Of course, my love for this community only grew stronger in my absence, but reality began to sink in. What if I met someone who didn't love this small town as much as me? What if we had better opportunities in other areas besides the one I grew up in? The idea of settling down into a homey community still pleased me, but I was open to the idea of changing locations for this future dream.

Sophomore year began a monumental phase in my life. For some reason, teaching didn't light the passion within me that it always had. Something in my gut told me that this wasn't my fate. I tried to fight it for awhile, not speaking of this concern to anyone. Finally, a few days into my first teaching courses, I gave in and switched majors. I was so terrified, I made a friend submit the online change of major form that I filled out.

My dreams had never seemed so far away. Here I was, walking blindly into the future with nothing but an incredible support system and my own intuition. I didn't know if home could support my dreams anymore. It's hard to decipher reality when you aren't exactly sure what you want out of it.

I still wanted to fulfill my passion for people.

I still wanted to change the world.

I still wanted that feeling of home. I wanted a place that is my own. I wanted a place to keep the pieces of my home and tie me to a community that would allow me to be a part of something greater than myself.

It turns out, that place had existed all along.

I found the home within myself. Over the span of the past year and a half, I have learned what it means to love myself. To truly love myself. To see the brokenness and beauty and value both. To see the value that I can offer the world. This process brought some of my highest highs and lowest lows. I was forced to admit the ugly truths that I had been hiding from for many, many years. I also finally began to see the wondrous gifts that I can offer the world. These discoveries have ignited my passion to give more to this world and to myself.

I still can't tell you exactly what I want to be. I'm not going to know where my life is meant to take me until I'm there. But, whether I end up by a Minnesota lake or the Texas ocean, I'm going to have a home. I want to see every corner of this magnificent planet and I'm going to love every minute of it. I want to touch many different pieces of this world. I want to continue adding space inside my home for all of the people who want to stay and taking care of the places that are just for me. I might never settle down. I might never stay in the same place longer than a few years. But, I'll always have a home.

I hope you find yours, too.