reintroducing words to my vocabulary and striking a balance.

A year ago, I never would have imagined that I would be sitting on a bed in the apartment of a residence hall at Clemson. I would have laughed at you if you said I would say "I love you" to someone other than a family member. Needless to say, the past 24 hours have been incredibly interesting for a variety of personal and professional reasons, and I am excited to see how this summer continues to unfold.

I have a tendency to keep my personal life very, very private. Few people know much about me, and even fewer know the real me. For a long time, I thought that was what I needed to do to be "safe" and make sure that no one hurt me. The few times I abstained from this mentality, it backfired and I was the one left alone and tending to wounds. Tentative at best was my approach to any potential suitor...

The past few weeks have been a whirlwind. Between wrapping up my previous job, the adventures of traveling home for a few days, getting to reunite with one of my best friends, and the road trip to Clemson, you would think my time would be monopolized. Rather, my heart was monopolized by someone who came into my life at just the right time...we tease each other because we met during the madness of finals and getting moved out for summer, but it was really the right time for me. I did not know how much I needed someone to come into my life and show me that I am beautiful and loved.

Self-confidence can be very difficult to build if you are someone who is not accustomed to receiving compliments. College and graduate school have completely altered my life, especially since I was fortunate enough to escape the outsider status of the small town that used to be my world. I believe in many ways I am a success story that shows you can leave behind a negative experience and build a new life with positive beginnings and positive influences. There is someone for everyone who will not only tell you about your strengths, but will vehemently defend your honor before anyone.

All smiles from the relationship front, now on to the employment front...
It was a wonderful first day at Clemson. The people are fantastic, and fortunately there are a few individuals close to my age here in town that are all super nice. It has certainly confirmed some of the qualities I seek for my first professional job - the search process creeps up on you before you fully recover from the last search! All in all, it has been an absolutely wonderful day, and the internship enables me to use my degree (ha! that old dusty thing that hasn't been of much use other than tutoring residents/RAs so they pass their history tests...) in a way that will benefit an organization that helped me gain some of my first professional contacts in the Southeast. :)

This may seem like a rather long blog post...and to tell the truth, it is! Life is looking up, and I am blessed with great family, friends, and an amazing boyfriend who seems to always know when to say the right thing and to challenge my thoughts so that I continue to grow. Striking a balance between wanting to spend every moment being happy with all of the recent life changes and actually getting down to work may be a bit tough right now, but it will all work out for the best - just have to have faith. :)

...you're always home.

I've been in Clemson, South Carolina...for approximately twelve hours.

It's been an incredible journey and I am thankful that I had the means to be able to get from a few much-needed days with the family - including an amazing afternoon with just my mom! - and have a day to rest before I jump into an all-day orientation starting at 8am tomorrow. Switching between time zones can mess you up in addition to a super-long drive!

This is going to be a pretty short post, since I'm thinking that a nap is most certainly in order...after I convince myself that contrary to popular belief, it's best to unpack.