Before you start reading, I would advise that you reference my about page that can be found here or in the navigation bar up top.
First I must say that I miss you all very much and it killed me to see everyone talking in the group chat on the first week back…but back to business.
Please excuse me for such an overtly cheesy title, but sometimes my dramatic side gets the best of me. As it comes down to the last couple of hours before I hop on the plane to spend the next four months in Italy, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on not just my summer, but also the last two years of my life since tomorrow marks the official midpoint of my college career. Unfortunately, I also decided to wait until the last minute to pack for said four months in Italy, so here I am sitting next to two open suitcases—belongings strewed across the floor—blankly starting at the screen grasping for thoughts on how I can verbally explain what I have achieved over the last two years. So you could say I am feeling a bit stressed.
Actually, I wouldn’t say stressed. I think the real word I am looking for is rushed. Rushed about making decisions that affect my future career path, where I should be looking to get my MBA, and what next steps I need to take to make myself better than I was yesterday. I am not saying that I do not want to do these things, but I have spent the last two years in an accelerated mindset and haven’t taken the time to actually enjoy and celebrate the journey. My most recent adventure was going out to a farm in Chimacum, Washington—a little town with one intersection about a two hour commute from Seattle. I stayed with a dear friend and his aunt and uncle in their bed and breakfast on their 33-acre farm that had a garden, an orchard, and a barn with chickens, pigs, and sheep. Very much not Asia at all. But being there gave me a luxury that I have not experienced in a long time.
I was able to pause and just be in the moment. That particular moment included me feeding some very excited pigs, but nonetheless. I was able to say, “Hey Asia. You are the f****** bomb! You got into the Honors College, you’re going to Milan as a representative of the US Department of State, and you nailed internship!” And that is a pretty radiant feeling. 1 I have noticed that among my super supportive, and highly driven friends (seriously guys, you all are the best) that we don’t take the time to slow it down and remind ourselves that we are awesome, and other people think so too—and I think that is a problem.
So what do I deem the solution? A hiatus. (Tada! That’s where the name comes from!) A break from the chaos that is the everyday struggle of a college student, or even a seasoned professional, in order to feel empowered by the things we have achieved rather than concerned about the stuff we haven’t done yet. A couple of minutes. A day. A week. In my case four month. Shoot, take what ever you need because if you don’t feel awesome about the things you have done (that deserve it) then you won’t see awesome about the things you will do later!
So that’s my plan for Italy. Taking it in stride and loving every second of it as I document things here and there. I hope you all will follow me with my journey and I always want to hear about what’s going on with yours. We all need to support each other—end of story. Shoot me an email or reach out to me through any other means.
First I must say that I miss you all very much and it killed me to see everyone talking in the group chat on the first week back…but back to business.
Please excuse me for such an overtly cheesy title, but sometimes my dramatic side gets the best of me. As it comes down to the last couple of hours before I hop on the plane to spend the next four months in Italy, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on not just my summer, but also the last two years of my life since tomorrow marks the official midpoint of my college career. Unfortunately, I also decided to wait until the last minute to pack for said four months in Italy, so here I am sitting next to two open suitcases—belongings strewed across the floor—blankly starting at the screen grasping for thoughts on how I can verbally explain what I have achieved over the last two years. So you could say I am feeling a bit stressed.
Actually, I wouldn’t say stressed. I think the real word I am looking for is rushed. Rushed about making decisions that affect my future career path, where I should be looking to get my MBA, and what next steps I need to take to make myself better than I was yesterday. I am not saying that I do not want to do these things, but I have spent the last two years in an accelerated mindset and haven’t taken the time to actually enjoy and celebrate the journey. My most recent adventure was going out to a farm in Chimacum, Washington—a little town with one intersection about a two hour commute from Seattle. I stayed with a dear friend and his aunt and uncle in their bed and breakfast on their 33-acre farm that had a garden, an orchard, and a barn with chickens, pigs, and sheep. Very much not Asia at all. But being there gave me a luxury that I have not experienced in a long time.
I was able to pause and just be in the moment. That particular moment included me feeding some very excited pigs, but nonetheless. I was able to say, “Hey Asia. You are the f****** bomb! You got into the Honors College, you’re going to Milan as a representative of the US Department of State, and you nailed internship!” And that is a pretty radiant feeling. 1 I have noticed that among my super supportive, and highly driven friends (seriously guys, you all are the best) that we don’t take the time to slow it down and remind ourselves that we are awesome, and other people think so too—and I think that is a problem.
So what do I deem the solution? A hiatus. (Tada! That’s where the name comes from!) A break from the chaos that is the everyday struggle of a college student, or even a seasoned professional, in order to feel empowered by the things we have achieved rather than concerned about the stuff we haven’t done yet. A couple of minutes. A day. A week. In my case four month. Shoot, take what ever you need because if you don’t feel awesome about the things you have done (that deserve it) then you won’t see awesome about the things you will do later!
So that’s my plan for Italy. Taking it in stride and loving every second of it as I document things here and there. I hope you all will follow me with my journey and I always want to hear about what’s going on with yours. We all need to support each other—end of story. Shoot me an email or reach out to me through any other means.