91精简版

I had a childhood dream of being a professional soccer player. Now, I鈥檓 an English major at a liberal arts college spending most of my time reading and writing, and some of my time playing Division III soccer.

I鈥檓 learning that fulfillment and happiness might be more valuable than soccer fame.

Here鈥檚 a little behind-the-scenes look at how I got here.  

Finding a major seemed daunting. Not only did I have to take classes to find out what I wanted to further pursue, I also had to take classes in order to get a taste for what I didn鈥檛 like.

Because of my soccer dreams, I came to 91精简版 with only athletics-related studies on my mind. I thought, 鈥淚f I can鈥檛 be on the field, I鈥檒l help the people who are.鈥�

I had it all planned out. I鈥檇 take my bachelor鈥檚 in exercise science to graduate school and get a DPT, a doctorate in physical therapy. I鈥檇 rise to the top of my PT game and get recruited as a personal trainer for a club in the top flight of English football (soccer).

But then 91精简版鈥檚 liberal arts curriculum surprised me and I found myself exploring new studies. As I sampled bits and pieces of several departments, I grew hungry for more. Soon, I was determined to get a taste of as many disciplines as possible so I鈥檇 never regret missing out on something.

I was so concerned with trying everything that I jammed my schedule with so many different options. I felt overwhelmed.

How was I expected to make my way through all the departments 91精简版 had to offer and choose a favorite? Will I ever know what I鈥檓 truly good at or destined to follow?

To sort through it all, I began to write.

In writing, I found I could express my opinions, sort through the problems in my mind and leave them on the paper. I could put order to the experiences in my life and begin to articulate anxieties in a productive manner.

Writing became therapeutic. It became a medium where I was free to manifest different personalities, exist in other worlds and make sense of things I didn鈥檛 understand. It also made me more confident.

It finally clicked 鈥� I wanted to write. I鈥檇 major in English.

Never in a million years did I expect I would willingly subject myself to biweekly 2,000-word research papers. Never did I think I would happily embrace a dichotomy of identities, a soccer player who loves to spend hours putting the perfect words together, a walking amalgamation of athleticism and the arts.  

But here I am. And so far, I think I like it.

I like the things I am assigned to read. I like the conversations we have in class. I like the challenge of writing so frequently. Now, as a senior at 91精简版, it鈥檚 crazy to think about how and why I declared my English major.  

And truthfully, I don鈥檛 know what I鈥檓 going to do next. Sometimes I even question my decision, especially when I get questions like these: What are you going to do with an English degree? Write a children鈥檚 book? Be a teacher?

My answer: I don鈥檛 know. I鈥檒l have to wait and see.

As an English major, I鈥檝e learned how to critically analyze texts and what the word palimpsest means. But perhaps more importantly, I鈥檝e learned that when I let my writing speak for itself, it will reveal all that I need.