I am one of those people that always had to try in school to get the grades that I wanted. I was smart, but I still had to put the effort in. I lost my older sister in a car accident when I was nine years old, and that was the first moment in my life when I realized that life was not always sunshine and blue skies.
I had to work just a little bit harder to get the results I wanted in school, sports, and even friendships. I have always related putting in the extra work to the death of my sister. To me, her death was like a challenge from God. From that day forward I had the choice to accept things for what they were or live under the understanding that things are just going to be a little bit harder for me.
Fast forward to my time in college. UGA was my dream school since I was a little kid. Sports were my passion since I could walk. I even started dreaming of becoming a sports broadcaster in middle school when I realized someone could make a living talking about sports. Then, once again, reality made me take a step back.
I worked hard in high school to get a good GPA, but I was still surprised when I was accepted into UGA. Once there, I didn’t get into the broadcast journalism major that would give me the experience I needed to start pursuing a career in sports broadcasting after college.
Rather than growing discouraged, I did the next best thing and chose a journalism degree. I figured if I ever want to be a broadcaster and make it in this industry I will have to know how to write.
I currently walk one of those paths that I never considered. I figured I would be employed right out of college with a job of my choice. Of course, that would have been too easy. I have once again realized that this new, tougher path of looking for the right job will be better in the long run. This is the way I have learned to look at life.
Going forward, I am no longer afraid of tougher paths. I am confident that my determination and effort will lead everything to work out.