My Life Now

It's always odd logging into this site after being away for so long. It's kind of like a strange returning home.

I continue to receive so very many nice comments about my work and my gallery here. Y'all can't know how much I appreciate it. 

I'm bored at work, so figured it would be a good time to update anyone still here that followed me. My life is good right now. It's...life. 

Let's back up. So, last May, I graduated with a Bachelors in English and History. I thought I would be going to grad school, but it wasn't in the cards yet. So, I ended up getting a job at my university. For the past year, I've been supervising the Tutoring and Writing Center, so I've been working with the peers that I worked with before, just as their boss. Super strange. I also got the chance to teach. It was amazing and solidified my life goals. 

I reapplied to grad school and, lo and behold, I'm moving to Austin, Texas to pursue my Ph.D in English literature. Crazy stuff. I move in August, which is just insane to me. It's definitely a new adventure; one that, now, I'm ready for. I don't think I would have been ready last year. So, this year off has been a good thing. It's weird to think that I have to say goodbye to people. Goodbye doesn't necessarily mean "I'm never going to talk to you again," but it does indicate that for some length of time, I won't see these people. I won't be able to call them up and say, 'Hey, let's get dinner.' Because I'll be in Texas and they'll be in New York or here. 

Crazy. 

I joined this site when I was 17. This summer, I'll turn 24. So much has changed. I'll admit, I've gone through my gallery once since my hiatus, and I can still pinpoint the time of my life a certain piece stems from. I've grown so much; the woman I am now is, at times, only barely reflected in my work here. Sometimes, I wish I could go back to that girl and tell her, "It's all going to work out in the end. You're going to survive this. This heartbreak, this loss, it's going to make you incredibly strong and capable." But, I know that telling myself these things wouldn't have mattered. Because sometimes we have to go through the struggles. We have to hurt and break and bleed in order to appreciate the what comes next. 

I truly hope everyone here is doing well. Thank you so much for the support. Love you all. 

--Emily