Hey everyone!!! I could make so many excuses as to why I have not written a blog post since May, but the truth is, I have been the least motivated I have ever been. I spent quarantine and summer reading books, both spiritual and fiction, I have cleaned A LOT, and I have officially become a resident at my parent's home once again. Two days ago, I realized that i had not written in a very long time, so I started to think about all the things I should update my readers on. Honestly, even if no one reads this, it's good for me to reflect on the craziness of my life. It's kind of like I have a personal and VERY public diary. Good thing the only thing I'm spontaneous about is sharing the story of my life.
Anyways... In this post, I wanted to give an update of where I'm currently at in life. I am a recent college graduate of Mississippi State University (Hail State). I started working at a daycare not too far from home where I get to spend my days with kindergarteners who have sticky hands, hair knots, and little bladders. As usual, I start my days with a little bit of coffee and a whole lot of Jesus. In this "diary entry," I want to share the newest journey that I am on because I am so stinkin' excited for it. I STARTED GRADUATE SCHOOL!!!
I am in a Master of Education in School Counseling program where I will pursue a career in Counseling Education and hopefully earn my way to be an Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) as well as a School Counselor. Ever since I started school at Mississippi State, I knew that I wanted to pursue a career in counseling. I recognized the benefits in accountability and mentorship early on in life and so, why wouldn't I pursue a career in it? I love studying the minds, personalities, and way of thinking in all human beings. The human mind is more complex than I will ever understand, which is so fascinating to me. My favorite age to study, observe, and work with is adolescence. That's right. I want to work with TEENAGERS. I know what some of you might be thinking. This girl is absolutely insane. Teenagers are difficult, disrespectful and SO hardheaded. They're stickier than the kindergarteners. Well, you see, this is the very reason why I love them. They are developing into the person that they want to be every single minute. How cool is it that each generation that passes through has different hearts, passions, understandings, goals, plans, environments, homes, etc. I want to know what they are thinking, why they are thinking it, and how they are going to express their thoughts into every day life.
My plan to pursue a career in counseling came to a halt after I had interned with a student ministry. I had very high hopes that I would stay with that ministry after graduation so that I could continue working with the students that I had met and loved. During my last two semesters of college, I had kept this plan, just waiting to hear an official offer. I had not applied to any graduate programs. I had not written goal statements or cover letters. I had not updated my professional resume. I had not given it a second thought after planning to work a full-time job after receiving my Bachelor's degree. After two months into my last semester, I decided to step down from the position I was in. I was taking 20 hours of major core classes and I was working another part-time job. I knew that I had been tackling more than I could hold down. It was one of the hardest things I had to do, but I knew that I had to finish strong. I also knew that there was no promise of a full-time position being needed for me to fill once I graduated. I cried for two Sundays straight because I was sitting in a worship service without the students that I had seen for 10 months straight. I was sad and I didn't know what was next.
So, naturally, I pull out my computer and start researching careers I could do with my degree in Educational Psychology. Turns out, an undergraduate degree in Ed Psych is nearly irrelevant; especially in Mississippi. While I was thankful for the degree that I was working for; I knew that I had three options: find a job that I don't want, pursue a different career, or go to graduate school for counseling (as I had originally planned). It took weeks of praying and asking God to give me the wisdom to understand and the endurance to pursue the next phase of life that He had already planned for me in advance. I began to research the graduate programs in School Counseling in Mississippi. I had missed the deadline for application at every single school. What a bummer. Now I have to wait an entire year? What the heck am I gonna do for an entire year?
I started emailing the head of the department at each school that I was interested in and you know what? I got an email back less than 24 hours later from each program excusing the deadline for me; meaning I COULD APPLY!!! And, so I did. And I got accepted into each program with an extended deadline of application and a waived requirement for the GRE (thanks, covid). I even got personal phone calls from professors of each program to inform me about themselves and the program itself. It was so exciting. I will never forget the feeling I got whenever I received those emails and phone calls.
I started the program this past week and I am a bit overwhelmed. However, I have no doubt that God has placed me exactly where I am for a specific reason. I am so excited to earn my Master's degree and to be an advocate for students for as long as God allows. I spent four years of my life changing majors and pursuing other things just to come back full circle and pursue my passion for counseling. God has been faithful over and over again and I am so thankful for His goodness and kindness towards me. I cannot wait to see how He is going to use me to advance His kingdom through School Counseling.
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