Back in my junior year of high school, I compiled a whole list of goals and dreams of mine that I wanted to accomplish. Some of these being free of all debt by age 40, publish my own book and to even create my own Youtube channel. As I've grown and realized more and more about myself, my life ambitions grew and changed with me.
Although there are some goals that I have forgotten about, there are many dreams and ambitions that I have picked in the past year of life that I wish to make a reality in the future. Here's a list of the three main skills, goals and ambitions that I wish to learn and achieve in the next year of my life.
1. Become an author.
Photo by Elijah O'Donnell on Unsplash
For as long as I remember, I have had an affinity with what I like to describe as "the world of the creative." This world being the place in society where pieces of art of all kind - paintings, writing, and film - reside and their creators are acknowledged for their power to express their creativity. I have spent many years of my life looking for how I can fit into this world; I've made attempts at character design for video games, sketches of cartoon characters and photographs of scenic landscapes, but none of them , felt right for me.
It wasn't until towards the end of my senior year that I realized how I wanted to be inducted into this world. I realized that I wanted to be a writer. Out of the blue, it finally made sense that my love for movies, video games and books was because of the storytelling and world-building that encompassed these things. I want to be able to foresee a story in my conscious and to then inscribe onto paper in words. Hopefully, in some way, my work would be able to reach the ranks of great authors, such as Maya Angelou and Stephen King, and be able to inspire others like me to find their own way into "the world of the creative."
2. Learn a foreign language.
Photo by Conor Luddy on Unsplash
As someone who was born and raised in South Florida and grew up in a majority Hispanic neighborhood, you'd think I would know enough Spanish to have a full conversation with someone or at least more than what I've learned in eighth-grade Spanish class. Sadly, neither is the case.
You see, even though my home was in a Hispanic neighborhood, I never really became involved in the local community since the school I went to was about 20 minutes away. Although I may have missed out on this cultural experience back then, I still have the goal of one day being able to intellectually converse with someone in a foreign language. I believe that language is a key part to a person's culture and identity, and I hope that in this next year, I will be able to know enough to step out of my own cultural norms and be a part of someone else's through language.
3. Learn how to cook.
Photo by Gaelle Marcel on Unsplash
Clearly, being a college student comes with the necessary burden of figuring out how to feed yourself. Most people, including myself, opt for the easy options and either eat out or gorge themselves with 99-cent Ramen. Then there are the select few who have one of the earnest skills for a college student to have, and that's to roll up their sleeves and cook their meals.
Even before I started college, I wanted to learn how to cook food beyond making cereal or a simple grilled cheese sandwich. I would love to be able to go to a grocery store, buy the ingredients I need, and come home and turn these individual components into one big, delicious meal. If all goes well within the upcoming year, I will be able to successfully cook well-rounded meals my friends, family and myself.
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