If you would have asked me a year ago if I'd be where I am right now, I would have laughed in your face. Staying in Tennessee was the very last thing I wanted to do after I graduated high school, to the point where my mom actually had to beg me to apply to UT. All I wanted to do was be on the West Coast, somewhere near where my dad grew up and pursue my career there without a worry in the world.

As the end of my senior year passed, lots of things and change happened which as a result led to me eventually applying to the University of Tennessee and pursuing my career at a place way too close to home.

I've thought a lot about the entire idea of putting my daydream of moving to California on hold since then and numerous people actually ask me why I ended up here and if I'm happy about it. Deep down I want to tell them no, but in all honesty, it's been the biggest blessing and ultimately, life lesson.

It taught me that no matter what circumstance or how big of a change we're going through it's so critical to remember that everything and every event that is happening in your life at the moment, even the really sh***y things, are happening for a reason and are going to, sooner or later, work out in your favor and place you exactly where you need to be.

My thoughts on being in a not-so-ideal place in life is that you can take the situation as more motivation to learn and grow from where you are in order to move on to something else and chase your dreams.

This was so tough for me to keep in mind at the beginning of the semester this year, but when you really think about it, the practice of appreciating exactly where you are is also a practice of gratitude in general. I am a firm believer that every moment leading up to now has shaped us into who we are destined to be, and that nothing is an accident.

Keeping these thoughts in your mind as you're going through big changes, I've found, helps to keep sanity and inner peace when it may be hard to otherwise.

"Learn to trust the journey, even if you do not understand it"