I started writing for my high school's newspaper when I was a junior in high school. When my first article was published and I saw my byline printed in bold, I knew I found my calling. It was then that I decided I was going to be a journalist. Prior to that, I thought about being a teacher, a nurse, a chef (which is hilarious because I hate cooking) and so on, but it wasn't until my junior year of high school that I discovered my passion and set the course for my final year of high school, the next four years of college and basically the rest of my life.

Since my junior year of high school, I have gone above and beyond to work towards my goal of becoming a journalist. I became the copy editor for my high school's newspaper, I declared journalism as my major in college, I joined numerous student organizations that focused on journalism, I got internship after internship and so on.

By my sophomore year of college, I was burned out and unsure if journalism was really what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I changed my major six times that year, quit every student organization related to journalism, applied for internships and scholarships focused on anything but journalism and lost my passion for writing.

It's been two years since I went through that transitional phase in my life, which also proved to be the most difficult year of my life (sophomore slump anyone?) I found my way back to journalism my junior year of college. While it might seem like a waste of time and money to have taken so many random, useless classes only to change my major back to journalism, I'm thankful I went through that experience because it made me appreciate journalism more and realize that it is what I want to do for the rest of my life. However, that experience wasn't nearly as life-changing as studying abroad this past fall and taking a semester off from studying my major.

I studied abroad in England for two and a half months and it was truly the greatest experience of my life. My international university didn't offer journalism classes so I took random classes that had nothing to do with my major. I was going to join the campus news station and continue writing for Odyssey, but after attending two training sessions at the news station and writing two Odyssey articles, I decided to take the semester off from studying journalism and just enjoy my study abroad.

(I was actually sitting in my newspaper class during my senior year of high school when I made it my goal to study abroad for a semester in college, so it's quite ironic that I decided to take the semester off from studying journalism while I was studying abroad.)

When I reflect on this decision, I often think about all of the field experience I neglected and everything I could have learned about the industry while living in another country. While I'm sure it would have beefed up my resume, I don't regret my decision.

I have been career and future-focused since I was 16 years old. I have postponed/canceled plans with friends, declined going out on a Friday night, doubted myself and my future, and so on. I have devoted the past five, almost six years of my life to journalism because it's what I'm passionate about and I understand that hard work and determination are essential to becoming a successful journalist.

I have been career- and future-focused since I was 16 years old, and for the two and a half months I was in England, I basically checked-out of journalism, ignored all of the stress and worries I felt back home and lived life to the fullest.

Will employers be impressed that I chose to move more than 3,000 miles away, experience and adapt to another culture and travel instead of studying at my home university and completing another internship? Maybe. Maybe not. But I don't regret it. I might be more "behind" than other students in terms of journalism experience, but I am far ahead culturally and mentally.

Visiting Paris, France was the first thing I ever wrote on my bucket list. I've had photos and postcards of the Eiffel Tower taped to my bedroom walls for as long as I can remember, and on November 21, 2018, I checked off my number one bucket list goal. I would take that moment and every incredible moment I experienced during my study abroad over another internship or addition to my resume any day because the joy I felt in those moments was immeasurable and often unexplainable.

Traveling and experiencing another culture truly changed my perspective on life; it changed me. I wanted to visit Paris, France and I did that. I wanted to study abroad and I did that. I wanted to travel and I did that. I wanted to LIVE - not just exist and go through the motions - but truly live, and I did that; I did everything I've ever wanted to do.

During my study abroad, I stepped outside of my comfort zone, made friends from all over the world, tried new foods, traveled solo, learned patience and independence and had the time of my life. I don't regret taking a semester off from journalism because I gained a new perspective and learned that there is so much more to life than working and focusing on the future; I learned to value the present and take life day by day while enjoying every single moment. I might not have gained any journalism experience while I was abroad, but I gained LIFE experience, incredible friends and unforgettable memories; for that, I am forever grateful.

Thank you for everything, England. Thank you for making me a better person, teaching me to value the present and teaching me that joy is the best feeling in the world.

I'll be back before you know it.