Changes and Decisions

I realized last night that this is my last semester as a junior. In the fall I will be a senior and I will only have two semesters here at Farmington before I graduate with my degree and a certificate to teach English to students in grades 7-12. Scary huh? I know I am a little freaked. There are a lot of things that will change after I graduate.

For example I have no idea where I'll be living but it probably won't be in this little apartment that I have come to call home. It could be any number of places really. Anywhere there is a job for me is most likely. That could take me anywhere in Maine. I am thinking though that I may want to stay more towards southern Maine. Mostly because of change number two. Garret will most likely be going to Grad school after our year and a half here is up and that will mean he will be somewhere not in this state while I am stuck here. That is what you get when you take out a loan that is forgivable only on the condition that you stay in Maine and teach. Those politicians that came up with it are very clever. However, they would have been smarter to offer it to people from out of state as well in order to get some diversity in our schools. Anyway, Garret is going out of state and I will be here teaching somewhere. No need to make the distance between us any greater right? I have never been farther away from Garret than one hour and a half long drive. I can see this being hard. He is such a constant in my life now that it will be hard to adapt to him not being there.

There is change number three too. I will have a job as a teacher. I will no longer be a student. I will be an adult with a job and probably even more bills than I have now and there won't be any loans to fall back on to help me out. It will be just me and my hard work and my teaching salary. I will be 22 when I get my very own classroom. I will be young and I will have only a little bit of experience.

All of this has brought me to a decision. I want to look into travel courses and student exchange opportunities. When I graduate from college I will be held in place even more than I am now because I will be even more broke, I will have just gotten a new job and chances to see Garret will be limited meaning the summer after graduating I am going to want to spend as much time with him as I can before he goes away and there won't b much of it since he and I will probably both be working. If I want to travel I should do it now while I have the opportunity. The University will help me with financial aid if I need it, plus I have some money put away and I still have time to see Garret. I could take a travel course during the May term be gone for 6 weeks and when I come back resume my job just in time for the back to school season and to enjoy my summer break. Garret at that point will be working who knows where but we will find time to see each other on weekends like we did last summer and I can hang out with my family and friends. I want to travel and I don't what kinds of opportunities will be offered to me after I graduate. Now is as a good a time as any. I can at least ask around and see what is out there.