The Future is Now

I'm probably the worst person at making decisions. When asked what I want for a meal or where to go out, the conversations normally go like this;

Me: "Where are we going for dinner?"

Mom: "Where do you want to go for dinner?"

Me: "I don't care."

Mom: "Well what are you in the mood for?"

Me: "What are you in the mood for?"
Mom: "I'm flexible. Whatever you want."

Me: "Well I'm not the only person who lives in this house. Other people eat too."

Mom: "Don't you have an opinion?"

Me: "No."

Mom: "Okay then..."

Me: "Well what do you feel like? What are the options?"

Mom: "There's Chipotle, Panera, Bull Run... What do you feel like out of those?"

Me: "Well... I could go for those salad things from Chipotle. Or I could go for a delicious salad at Panera. OR, I could get that thing I really love from Bull Run."

Mom: "Thanks."

Me: "No problem. Well, how about we try to narrow it down?"

Mom: "Okay."

Me: "I could skip out on Bull Run."

Mom: "So now we're down to two options."

Me: "Wait... Okay. Choose a hand."

Mom: "Left."

Me: "I don't remember what that was... Hold on." (Then I would always do Eenie Meenie). "Okay, Panera it is."

Mom: "Sounds good."

This process happens all the time. I solve a lot of my indecisiveness by doing "eenie meenie". But, when the big decisions come, I realize I can't exactly do that... So, when those big life changing decisions come up, I pray a lot about them and talk to my family members about it.

Deciding a major at 16 is a small challenge in my opinion. I had to decide what I was basically going to do with the rest of my life by this November. And I couldn't change that for the little more than a year and a half I have left of school.

In the beginning, I had talked a lot about nursing. It seemed like the right choice. I loved Biology and I've always wanted to help people. One day my mother and I planned out my whole schedule for the rest of my semesters in the Allied Health Sciences degree. I would then stay at MWCC for another year while I finished up my RN. It was exciting for me. I mean, becoming an RN by the time I was 19? 

As the weeks progressed in school and I was taking my Pathways Advisory class, I realized that I was no longer sure about my decision. We talked a lot about choosing our careers and doing something we were passionate about. How could I tell I was passionate about nursing when I had never done it and I had only ever been good at Biology? It was a problem. My true passion was writing. I was writing all the time and constantly thinking of where to bring the books I was writing. Ideas came to me all the time and writing was the best thing for me. So, I looked at the Liberal Arts and Sciences degree and tried to make a schedule. Nothing was that intriguing. There were other four year colleges that had the perfect degrees for creative writing. Still, I wasn't 100% on the LAS degree. I wanted to do something that was much more interesting to me degree wise. I didn't want to feel like I was just trying to push through until graduations. That's not what I wanted.

One day in my computer class I wasn't paying attention (as usual) and looked at all of the degrees Mount Wachusett offered. I stumbled upon one that looked particularly interesting, but wasn't sure, so I ended up just looking at the requirements I would need to become an RN.

A few days went by and my mom said something about becoming a social worker and I told her I had just been looking at the Human Services degree offered at MWCC. We looked again and then went to BYU and BYUI's websites. I really just ended up looking at BYUI and found that they had an actual Social Worker degree-major thing. 

Now, I just added another option to the list of paths for me to take. 

I continued to pray about it. I had previously prayed about the first two degrees, but felt like I wasn't really getting anything either way. When I added the Human Services, I realized that it just seemed so much better. Still, I was willing to change to whatever path I was supposed to take, even if I changed my mind thirty seconds before my meeting with our program director. 

When the time came, out came my mouth the words, "I was thinking about the Human Services degree." I felt good about it, like I was making the right choice. So, we spent a bit of time creating a schedule for me.

I realized that the nursing was a good option, but I was basing that idea on one science class. I'm interested in people and how they work. I'm interested in the mind and things to do with psychology. And, I can combine those interests with helping people and trying to change lives for the better. 

I ended up hopping down the stairs with a huge smile on my face after I completed creating my schedule for next semester. I'm excited for this journey!

Today's quote comes from good ol' Pinterest (as usual):

It's intimidating and somewhat scary to be in college at 16, but I have to keep on reminding myself that I love this program. It's opening so many doors for me. It's exciting! And I can't be constantly afraid of failing. I have to know that I can do it. I have to know that I can challenge myself so I can get to where I want to be. 

Did I mention I was excited? 

---Maggie