"It’s a big world out there," for the most cliché way possible to start what could be the most cliché article ever. But it's true; the world is full of places to go, people to meet, things to experience and stuff to see…and I’m going to do my best to see it all.

We’re all given chances in life to go out and try anything and everything we can; it’s something I have not ever taken for granted.

I’ve learned that life is full of adventures, but for years I’ve struggled to find the greatest one of them all.

When I was born, I came into this world just like everyone else: possessing the unlimited potential to become someone great. To my parents, the sky was not and would never become my limit; they would live to see me, their second child, go on to accomplish great things. They instilled those beliefs in me all throughout my life.

They taught me to never stop improving myself; to never accept anything short of 100 percent of my entire being and best effort. They saw this incredible ferocity in me from the moment I came into this world.

But being born was not my greatest adventure in life.

Photo by Karley Nugent

When I was three years old, I became a big sister to the most amazing little brother on this planet. From the moment I met him, I knew I would do whatever I had to do to never let him down.

I worked on being the best guiding light for him; I tried to teach him so many things and help him along as he figured out life. In the end, he taught me a lot more about myself than I had ever known, and being a big sister to him helped in ways I can’t even describe.

But becoming a big sister was not my greatest adventure in life.
Photo by Karley Nugent

When I was 12 years old, my life was uprooted in the most tragic of ways I have ever personally known. Hurricane Katrina ravaged my home, and it took everything I had away from me.

I moved back and forth from a camper to an apartment for years while my family had to rebuild our lives. There were countless fights, sleepless nights and so much heartbreak in the years that followed that storm. I remember feeling like I had to constantly be aware of everything after it all happened; like I had to understand what was happening at every moment so nothing could surprise me like that again.

Years after the hurricane, once everything was settled, I felt a sense of accomplishment. We had rebuilt our lives, and we were thriving. Those senses of potential and purpose had returned to me, and I had learned that nothing could stop me as long as I kept pushing.

But surviving Hurricane Katrina was not my greatest adventure in life.

Photo by Karley Nugent

When I was 14 years old, I was on a beach in Florida, and I picked up a camera and started shooting. This lead me down a path I would never return from; I found my greatest passion in life.

My love affair with photography has never lessened since that first sunset I shot on the beach. I’ve completely dedicated my life to this art and want nothing more than to be able to pursue this profession for the rest of my life, because it gives me a sense of fulfillment like nothing else does.

Photography makes me feel whole; it gives me comfort when I’m sad and highs when I’m happy. It’s my life, my destiny and my future.

But discovering my passion for photography was not my greatest adventure in life.

Photo by Karley Nugent

When I was 17 years old, I met a boy who I thought was going to stay with me forever. We were inseparable; completely meant to be together because I thought the stars had aligned and placed us in each other’s lives.

We overcame obstacles, distance and trials together. We laughed and cried and shared everything with each other. We were the best of friends. I never wanted it to end; I never wanted to feel differently about any other boy than I did with him.

After a few years, things fell apart. To this day, I still don’t entirely understand why, but a part of me believes it's because our lives were becoming very different. We questioned each other’s choices and frustrations led to fallouts.

We haven’t spoken in months now, and it took me a while to adjust to that. To learn how to exist without someone I’d talked to every day for years; to learn how to be happy on my own, but I did it, and I'm thankful to him for helping me learn how to stand on my own, no matter how paradoxical that revelation may seem.

Eventually, I did move on. The first few weeks were absolutely hell, but I got through it. I realize now that I’m better for it. All the pain I felt helped me to see just how strong I can be, and how wholesome I can be by myself. I learned how to focus on myself, and to be content with the fact that I will always be enough for me.

But getting through heartbreak was not my greatest adventure in life.

Photo by Karley Nugent

When I was 22, I was having the greatest summer of my life. I was so fortunate to have been given the opportunity to spend three months in what I believe is the most incredible place on this entire planet: Yellowstone National Park.

I was climbing mountains. I was making friends from all over the country and all over the world. I was photographing things I never imagined could exist. I was hiking all over to see parts of the world so few people get to see for themselves. I never wanted it to end; I could have stayed there forever.

But if there’s one single most important lesson I took from my time in Yellowstone, it’s that our planet is full of undiscovered treasures, and traveling to discover them with my camera to document them all is what I want to do for the rest of my life.

Yellowstone holds a piece of my very soul that I don’t ever want back, and I aspire to leave more pieces in so many other places around the world as I hope to enter a career with the National Park Service upon my upcoming graduation from college.

But dedicating my life to exploring the world was not my greatest adventure in life.
Photo by Karley Nugent

Throughout my 23 years of existence, I’ve had the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. I’ve laughed and cried and picked myself up and pushed myself on in more ways than I could ever list.

And alone, none of those things are the greatest adventure in life.

Together, they are all a part of my greatest adventure.

The events I have faced had molded me; they’ve shaped my heart and soul a little at a time. I’ve learned what I hate and I’ve learned what I love throughout my time in this world.

Living my life to the absolute fullest extent, pushing any and every one of my limits and learning who I am through all my experiences is the greatest adventure in my life.

Taking chances, going places, diving head-first into situations that scared me, pushing myself and accomplishing things I never thought myself capable of…they’re all what contribute to my greatest adventure.

And it’s not over; it’s so far from over.

My past and my present are only a small part of this journey I’m on. I have an entire future to keep adding to the list. There will be hard times, and there will be great times. But I’m ready, because that’s what life is.

No singular event is the best thing that will ever happen to you; choosing to do more than simply exist, and taking any and every opportunity you can…that’s what it’s all about.

Live your life and do great things, so when you look back on all you did, you realize it was your greatest adventure, too.

Happy exploring.