This time of year always makes me nostalgic. Endless streams of caps and gowns march across my news feed, statuses are filled with hopes and well wishes for the future, and I'm searching youtube for a dose of commencement style inspiration.
It's been three years (!?) since I donned my cap and gown, marched across a stage, and was handed a piece of paper which would serve as proof that I got an education. Three long, confusing, terrifying, wonderful years. And I am no where close to where I thought I would be.
I thought that by now, I'd have a few small stage and film credits under my belt, because nothing could stop me. I thought I'd have a great job with a theatre company as a literary manager. I'd be living in an apartment in Manhattan, and spending my Saturdays at the park.
Instead, I am none of the things I described above. The long and terrifying path I've travelled since graduating, has led me down a road I did not expect.
I'm a writer.
I weave words, and paint pictures in your mind. I observe the world, I ask questions, chase answers, and travel to incredible faraway places.
I never thought I'd be a writer, except for a brief moment in the second grade. I told my Grandma "When I grow up, I wanna write books!" She warned me of the unstable lifestyle, so, I decided to be an actor instead. But I've always found comfort in words. During my darkest times, they were my only hope. I scrawled angry words, sad words, hurting words on page after page after page after page. I challenged my own beliefs, and found my own answers. I faced reality, and wrestled with each letter as I spelled out my journey.
After I graduated, I started writing stories. Or...half-stories. I never knew how to end them. Until I did. I finally finished a story, and my life was changed. I started calling myself a writer, even got published, went on a mini-book tour, and sold a lot of books. I kept writing. Collecting words, and turning them into something beautiful.
Graduates, your life may turn out to be nothing like what you are expecting. But I can promise you that the road ahead will lead you to where you are meant to be. Don't fight it. I spent two years fighting my urge to write. I was determined to prove myself as an actor, but I couldn't stop scribbling on scraps. I couldn't admit to myself that maybe, just maybe, I was supposed to do something else. You must embrace life as it unfolds before you. Do the things that make you happy, and you will find your way.
Last night, I took a little stroll down memory lane. I went to see my cousin in her final high school theatre performance, and as I walked through the doors of my former high school (which felt remarkably small), I was flooded with memories and emotions. Seven years have passed since I walked those halls. When I saw my High School theatre teacher, she gave me a big hug. We quickly caught up. She told me that she'd heard about my book, and was so excited for me. She then took my hand, and said exactly what I needed to hear. "You always were a storyteller."
I replied, "That's all I ever wanted to be."
I took my seat in the theatre, and remembered the four years I spent in there learning how to tell stories. In that room, I learned how to bring characters to life. I learned how to believe in the unbelievable, and create the impossible. In that room, I learned what I was capable of. And last night, it was in that room that I remembered what I am capable of.
You have no way of knowing where your journey will take you. All you can do is trust it. It will take you where you're meant to be.
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