I have always enjoyed the ocean. I love sharks, whales, and marine life in general. I think the ocean is a beautiful place. However, in the middle of Mississippi, it is a little more difficult to go to the ocean. Ever since I was little, I always thought it would be cool to swim with sharks. In fact, it is one of my life goals. I would love nothing more than to go to Seal Island on the coast of Africa to cage dive with great whites for the rest of my life. That, however, isn't practical.

Around fifth grade, I wanted to be a whale trainer at Sea World... Somehow, however, my career path got off track. The summer after my senior year of high school I went to Sea World in Orlando. I got the opportunity to swim with two beautiful beluga whales with my cousin. The trainer showed us a behind the scenes look at how they take care of their animals. She showed us exactly how much food they give the whales; and while there have been debates on whether or not Sea World takes care of their animals, I left knowing in my heart that Orlando takes great care of theirs.

The water was 52 degrees Fahrenheit, and wetsuits do not offer much warmth. However, it was the best hour of my entire life. The whales were named Maple and Aurick. Maple was a girl. I thought she was big until I saw the boy Aurick. It was so much fun to feed them, and have them do tricks with us. While we were there, I couldn't help but think how much I would love to do that for the rest of my life. How cool must it be to wake up to go see a whale every day?

I, like most people, do not believe in raising wild animals in captivity. The whales at Sea World were born there, and that is all they know. I, however, would much rather work with sharks and whales to promote the conservation of oceans. Unfortunately, like I said, that is not all that practical. I wouldn't even know where to begin to work with the animals, and I would probably leave my job unable to focus on anything else except the animal's well being.

While my experience at Sea World was fun, and I still want to cage dive, I realized that I love psychology. I have found my place in this world through psychology, and I think I can help people through their psychological stressors. It is just more practical than spending your life in the ocean. In fact, I don't think humans belong in the ocean at all. I can still promote conservation of sharks. I can still stand up against shark finning and whaling. If humans do not help them, they will not be around too much longer. I made a new goal to help them outside of the ocean.

I may never be on Shark Week showing how beautiful sharks really are. I may never be able to cage dive to see a shark in person. I may never be able to see how beautiful the ocean coral reefs are and all the different marine life in those reefs. But, I will always love the ocean. And I will always remember my life changing experience at Sea World in Orlando. If I can't see it for myself, I will always have access to online resources.