Finding Home
Currently, I am watching the movie Julie & Julia, avoiding studying for my last exam on monday. Something I shouldn’t be avoiding studying for since I am a little concerned about the test. Oh well, that is for tomorrow to worry about.
Today I feel very much at peace. With all the craziness of the last few weeks of school, spending 4 hours on the phone with my mother today, planning out the next few years of my life, especially the next year, made life seem to calm down. Next year I am going to move off of campus and get my first apartment! It’s time for me to spread my wings even more, the dorms are getting a little cramp for where I am in life. It is exciting and terrifying all at the same time. I have always thought of dorms as a stepping stone to adult living. I am excited to even be looking at different apartments across Palm Beach County. The idea of having my own kitchen has got me inspired to cook! The movie choice for tonight isn’t helping either. A living room to great people in sounds wonderful. Then the idea of having to pay for everything that comes with an apartment, more grown up responsiblity.
The idea of settling down in Florida excites me. I finally feel like I have a home! Florida is my home. For years, I moved around all over the world, always looking for a home, my home. For years, I lived with the mentality that home is where my stuff is. A military concept that I have adapted since middle school. My friends and I made up songs about it in the 7th and 8th grade, trying to understand what others take for granted every day.
I am such a mix of cultures, some days, I don’t know where I fit in, but after 2 years living in South Florida, working on my third year, I finally feel at home. There is no deadline to my time here. Each time I fly up north, my heart longs to come back to sunny Florida. I have friends here, I have fun here, I have great days exploring the wonderful state. I feel like I am finding myself in Boca Raton and I maybe would not have found myself anywhere else in the world. In part, Lynn has helped me find myself, figure out where I am heading, and allowed me to adapt and adjust to American life. I know that last part is a funny concept for many to understand, since yes, I am an American, but like I said, I am a mix of many cultures.
My mom and I talked about Graduate school as well. I want to go to University of Florida to get my veterinarian degree. Its scary to think of leaving the comfort of Lynn’s small size to a campus the size of a small town. I can walk across campus in 7 minutes. There, I might be driving for 7 minutes. UF is the only school that has the veterinarian program in the state and the idea of leaving Florida is depressing. I have fallen in love with the beaches, fresh air, beautiful landscaping, and so much more. I have met so many people that have changed my life here at Lynn. All I know is that I can’t part with Florida. UF is my first choice, and with all the help that there is avaible for preparing for life after Lynn, I’m sure I will have all the support I need when I begin applying for graduate school.
Sometimes in life, a girl just needs to talk to her mom for 4 hours, making plans, getting excited about the future, and talking through the concerns of growing older and gaining more responsiblity.
This movie is really inspiring me to cook, which is only getting me even more excited about the idea of getting my first apartment in just a few months. I think after I finally move in, everything unpacked, this would be the best movie to break in the new kitchen! Julie & Julia, a movie that speaks to all young cooks who want to expand their menu.
The future seems to be bright, relaxed, exciting, and quickly catching up to me. Where did the last two and a half years go? Suddenly, I now have to make even more grown up decisions. Time flies when you are having fun under the sun, the last I checked I was barely legal and now I’m almost old enough to drink and gamble and tell the District of Columbia that I can’t make it to jury duty. Sorry, but I’m a busy Florida college girl now, didn’t you know?!
