When I was a little girl I wanted to be so many things. I wanted to be a doctor, a veterinarian, a singer. I also wanted to cure cancer and travel around the world in 80 days just because I had heard about it one time on TV.

That’s the thing when you’re a kid. You haven’t realized your passion yet, you haven’t realized your gift. Everyone has one of them. A gift. Something that has been given to you by whatever God or force you believe in. You are ridiculously good at something even if you’re afraid to admit it or are worried people won’t understand.

I’ll give you three facts.

1. I absolutely adore people. I actually really am a people person even though I’ve got one smartmouth and cannot stand anyone being ignorant.
2. I love stories. I read at least two books a week. (I’m a grandma I know) The bends and hills in a story are what help my imagination flourish; they help me escape when I need to. They are my safe haven.
3. I didn’t realize I wanted to be a journalist until I jumped.

By jump I mean took a chance. A really crazy one looking back. Coming to Ball State I’m pretty sure I thought that I was going to do something...eventually. I showed up to freshman orientation and had to pick a major.

You see, I had given the people in my life the go around. You know when you tell your grandma something and then you tell your mom something else and then by the time it’s over everyone thinks you’re going to be a doctor or a lawyer or a marine biologist. (I was rather creative and I don’t even mess with the ocean like that...or science for that matter.)

I was stressed. I was nervous. I skimmed along, I saw criminal justice and I almost checked the box. But then I saw creative writing, which led me down to journalism and for some reason I just felt something inside of me. It sounds cliche I know but seriously, I was in over my head with no idea what I wanted in life so I jumped. I took a chance.

The best chance I have ever taken.

You see, as kids our age we owe it to ourselves to jump. To take risks and fail and then take another risk and fail again. I fail at least once a day and yes I do call my mom and cry about it sometimes.

We are all so good at something and it would be such a waste of talent, and of your life, if you graduated and went to some job you hated. You lived your life day to day, hating everything and everyone and becoming one of those people who look like they’ve been fake smiling so long it’s actually creepy.

I will not get paid much as a journalist but I will love what I do everyday. Money is important but honestly my happiness is ten times more important to me. That, and love, will be all I will ever need to be truly happy.

I know some of you are sitting here thinking “well some of us have bills” or “some of us have kids” or “I'm not talented at something”. Well, surprise pumpkin you are talented at something and if you don't know what it is it means you don't really know yourself. You’re love with something, you just have to allow yourself to go and love it in the world.

Take a jump. Take a leap of faith or strength or honestly just have someone push you off the cliff but do it. Do it and find what you are passionate about. Put some good back into the world with your love for your job.

We need that, passion, love, happiness, now more than ever. Start with yourself. Jump.