To Where We've Been and Where We're Going

It's pretty easy to go from day to day without ever really stopping to think about where you are in life. It seems like the only time we stop to actually think about it is during transitions in life, and maybe during the new year, depending on how big you are on reflection. There's no doubt that right now I'm going through a major transition - moving out and going to college. It's also the new year (Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year for those of you who don't know,) and as it turns out I'm pretty big on reflection too so if you combine those three factors I've definitely spent some time recently thinking about where I am in life.

A year ago I knew that I would be moving away soon, but I had no idea where to. For awhile I was hoping maybe I would end up at University of Maryland or University of Georgia, but I soon realized neither of those places were going to start me on the path I wanted to take (at least not until junior year when journalism school applications opened.) After narrowing down my list, finishing applications, and getting acceptance letters, where I would end up came down to four potential places: Tempe, AZ, Ft. Collins, CO, Bloomington, IN or Boulder, CO.

(If you happen to be friends with me, or even just facebook friends with me, you probably (hopefully) know where I ended up. If you don't, just keep reading.)

Last year at this time I remember sitting in the back of the temple I grew up in at Rosh Hashana services thinking "this might be the last year here", and instead of reflecting on everything that had happened in 5772, I was looking forward. Not even to the coming year, but the year after. I knew that the upcoming year was going to be a year all about figuring out my future. It was a year that was about the years to come.

Fast forward to this Rosh Hashana and now I'm living that future. It's weird to think that just one year ago I didn't know what city I would be living in right now. Let alone a year ago - I didn't know what city I would be living in now until late April.

Back to having four potential future homes- I pretty quickly eliminated 3 of those choices. So you would probably think that that means I easily decided where I wanted to go and that's where I am now, happily ever after. But no. At the time I decided that more than anything I wanted to go to Bloomington to study at Indiana University. I had my heart and my mind set and I was ready to pack my bags and head out to Hoosier nation.

I don't really need to go into detail about the many reasons why that didn't end up working about, so let's just leave it at the fact that out of state tuition is really really ridiculously high.

I don't think I realized it at the time but I got my mind so set on going to IU that I forgot how much I loved the other schools I had gotten into. I let myself forget the fact that something I had dreamed of for six years was still there waiting for me.

If you haven't guessed by now that I obviously ended up in staying in Colorado (out of state tuition comment should've been a hint), or you have but couldn't figure out where in Colorado I went, then here ya go...

When I stepped onto the CU campus for the 1st time in 2007 to bring my brother to school, I knew it was where I wanted to go. Fast forward six years and I couldn't be more excited to officially be a University of Colorado Buffalo.

I think the point of this post started out as advice to make sure you stop to think about where you are in life more often than usual, and ended up just being a story about where I've been in life for the past year. So I guess the moral of the story goes out to all of you current high school seniors, freaking out about the fact that you don't know where you're going to be a year from now. It's more than ok to freak out, because it's scary not knowing. But just keep in mind that you're going to end up right where you belong, even if it's not where you thought it was going to be.

It's officially been two weeks for me of living in Boulder: dorm life, dining halls, classes, getting lost on campus, making new friends, winning rival football games and so much more and I could not be happier (or more exhausted.)

And L'Shana Tova to all my Jewish followers! May you have a wonderful and sweet new year - wherever it takes you.

Here's to where we've been and where we're going - but most importantly, where we are right now.

~Melissa Tamar
(Blogger Buff)