In Retrospect : Introduction

Graduation season is upon us, and I can't help but to look back and remember where I was mentally and physically two years ago. There was a strangeness surrounding this time; an excitement for what's to come tainted slightly with a fear of the unknown. I knew that everything in my life was about to change, but I didn't know when that change would occur. Nor did I know if  I could handle it.

Thinking about all of my friends who are about to take the huge leap from "college student" to "adult," or even on a smaller scale from "high schooler" to "college student," I imagine some of them feeling wholly unprepared for the journey they are about to embark on. And who's to blame them? I felt that way when I was finishing up both high school and college.

Me and my family at the HHS Class of '08 Ceremony

The broad advice I was given after completing secondary and higher education was somewhat irrelevant to me. While inspiring and "feel good," the graduation commencement speeches were too generalized and too far away for me to connect with on a personal level. And throughout college I yearned for more relatable advice. No one I knew had to deal with the same conflicts of juggling a professional dance career, academics, and a college social life. During those four years my parents, my brother, and later on my close friends were my pillars of support and counsel.

Me and my family at the UCLA Class of '12 Ceremony

Which leads me to my next new set of blog posts appropriately titled, "In Retrospect." While I wouldn't trade my college experience for anything in the world, I think there are some situations and opportunities that, in retrospect, I could have handled more wisely (like whether or not to take a dance job over my Environmental Economics midterm or whether or not to apply for graduate school). I'll write about them here while they're still fresh in my memory and hopefully those that might currently be in similar (or identical) scenarios might stumble upon my posts and gain some valuable information.

These stories may be most relevant to those of you who were just released into the real world, or they might just serve as entertaining anecdotes for those of you who will never find yourself in the same strange but real predicaments of being a college student/aspiring dancer or college-graduate/aspiring dancer.

In Korea for a job during my sophomore year of college 

Whatever the case, check back each week as I dedicate my Thursday posts to remembering post-high school and post-college days.

It'll be a real #tbt treat.