When you find what you love, chase it.

“Use CMU to find out what you’re good at. Whittle it down. Whatever comes from your classes, use it, and when you find what you love, chase it. Chase it for the rest of your life. Then you’ll be doing something you want to do.” – Jeff Daniels

Who would have thought that Jeff Daniels would have given me the best career advice out of everyone in this world? A man that doesn’t know me, who called me once, gave me excellent advice to give to students around the school.

But it really felt like he was talking to me, too.

I’ve spent the last six years at Central Michigan University. I’ve spent countless hours on campus, in classes, participating in extracurriculars, going to football games and taking pride in being a Chippewa.

I’ve cried more times in classrooms and in the library than I want to admit. I’ve laughed with so many friends in the dining halls, and I’ve met some really radical people who helped shape me into who I am today.

Central Michigan University was my home before I was a student here. I grew up on its campus. I broke my arm in fourth grade in Anspach Hall. I met my first mentor in Moore Hall. This place helped me grow into my own, and it pushed me to be a better me.

It’s been six years. I can’t believe that in that time I’ve gotten so many useful life skills. I know how to network. I know how to create stories worth reading. I can take a photo and make it look damn good.

It’s been six years of searching for my passion, and Central helped me find it. I love sharing people’s stories. I love being able to connect them with the community that surrounds them. I love that I have the power to do that through my words, and I love that people trust me to share their stories.

I’ve found what I love, and in 10 days, I get to start chasing it.

Fire Up Forever.

Learning and growing

I find it truly incredible how much this last year of my life has helped me grow. I’ve become so focused on my career lately that very little outside of my classes and my internships has mattered. I feel terrible because of how much I’ve neglected my best friends in the process of growing as a person, but I’ve gained so much in experiences. It’s that devil of a triangle where you have to pick two: sleep, good grades or a social life.

I feel like the greatest place I’ve grown, though, is emotionally. I also feel like I’ve hid my emotions a lot lately, but more about that in a minute.

I started talking with Sean in April. We talked every day, and he just got me. He took me on our first date in May. From there, we spent nearly every weekend together, texted every day, acted like a normal couple, but we never put a label on it. I still fell so hard for that man. Then he left for the summer to work at Cedar Point. We had already been doing distance, so this wasn’t that much different.

Sean had talked about teaching English in Thailand since the beginning of our dating. I knew it was a goal that he had, and he was determined to reach it. I admired him for it and for chasing after it so feverishly. He had an interview with a group that could place him abroad quickly.

He had just finished at Cedar Point and had gone with his mother and grandmother to Cleveland for his grandmother’s surgery. But a few days into that trip he stopped responding to my texts. I worried something terrible had happened.

Five days later, he texted me from the airport saying he had gotten placed in the program and was flying out for training.

I didn’t get to properly prepare my heart for this. Had he told me when he had got the job offer, I would have been able to pull out, grab the bit of my heart I had given him and run.

This happened a month ago. I’ve had nightmares about him leaving again. I’ve cried more often than I’d like to admit. But it’s also given me so much more determination to get out of college and chase after my dreams. I’m not mad at Sean for following his heart and achieving his goals. I couldn’t be prouder of him than I am right now. I’m mad at him for not letting me protect my heart, though.

I wrote him a letter when he left, and I don’t know that he’ll ever read it, but it’s there for him:

I’m so proud of you for accomplishing this goal. I’m so proud of you for not letting me hold you back and I’m so, so incredibly proud to say that I’ve had you in my life for some short amount of time.

I don’t know when I’ll fall out of love with you or if it’ll stay in my heart forever, even just in a little piece. I don’t know when the tears are going to stop falling or when my heart will stop hurting. I wish I knew these answers.

But please don’t forget how proud of you I am. I appreciate you for helping me grow as a person, and I wish I could have said all of this to your beautiful face. I’m not mad at you. I’m just so incredibly proud of everything you do and everything you’ve helped me do. Thank you.

But that’s the devil in relationships. You end up letting that wall break down just a little and watch this person climb in and set up camp. It’s terrifying because you wonder, “what do they think they’re doing in my territory?” But you still sit by that fire they built and share stories and get to know them. When they leave, you’ll miss them, but you still have those stories and those experiences to learn from. And that’s the beauty of every relationship.

It’s taken me a little while to share this story because I worry that it’ll make me seem weak, like it’ll make me seem oblivious to things that were happening around me.

But I think the story makes me more human. You can’t control the actions of those around you, but you can control the way you react to those actions. I’ve retreated some emotionally. I’m focusing on school and just getting out, and I’ve started to build that emotional wall back up. But I’m still grateful for the man that tore it down a bit.

Sean was my first significant relationship in almost two years. He was the first relationship I’ve had that had decent communication between the two of us, until that ending little hiccup. But I still appreciate everything he taught me about myself and what he taught me about relationships. Maybe someday I’ll find someone that I can love that will love me back, and we can communicate and be happy sometimes and fight sometimes and just talk.

I had a drunk 50-year-old woman at Blissfest in 2010 tell me, “Communication is key.” I didn’t know then how much her words would continue to ring true through my life, but I’ll never forget them, and I’m going to continue to live by them.

Change

“It is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be. ” – Isaac Asimov

It’s difficult thinking about the future and what it can hold. One part of me is certain that it’s full of endless possibilities, that I can go anywhere, work from anywhere and do anything. A journalism degree does not limit me to just covering the news. I could freelance, edit, write for a paper or magazine. I could enter communications or marketing or advertising. Yet, another part of me feels stuck in a rut, set with the conservative, traditional ten year plan that 18-year-old me wanted.

One of the best things that has happened to me is dating a man that has such clear goals in mind about where he wants to go, what he wants to do and what he wants to be. I admire his tenacity in reaching those goals, too, not letting anything hold him back, including me. I appreciate his open communication since the beginning of our relationship about these goals and his determination to achieve them. I support his dreams and anything that he has to do to get there, even if it means his leaving the country and me behind with it.

Like Asimov said, “It is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today.” Without change, there is no spark, nothing to look forward to, nothing to push for. I’m watching the industry I adore change rapidly, from the MLive internship program getting cut to reporters leaving almost weekly for other jobs. It’s terrifying to watch those jobs left vacant. However, that’s a change the company has made and it’s a reflection of how society feels about journalism.

Yes, change is scary. I’m entering my final semester of college on Monday. I have 18 credits, 115 days and six finals that stand in the way of me and my degree. After five and a half years, it’s time to move on. I won’t let anything stop me. There will be lots of changes along with it, an abundance of new ideas and opportunities ahead of me during the semester and especially after. Embracing change is the only way to go about life, though.

You shouldn’t get stuck in some rut because it’s where you feel you should be. You shouldn’t rest on your laurels because it’s what is comfortable. You should be constantly pushing forward, trying for better and making yourself better in turn.

I think John F. Kennedy put it best when he said, “Change is the law of life, and those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.”

Digital divides

As I laid in bed, the clock at the top of my phone screen read 00:17. A new text message notification popped over the little numbers. Sean 🌊 R

New iMessage 

it read. It was from the man I’ve been dating for five months or so. 

We met online, like a lot of Millennials these days. We talked for almost a month before actually meeting, and hit it off quickly. 

Almost every weekend for the first two months we spent at least 24 hours together. Our first date alone lasted close to 30 hours. 

Then, he got a job in another state. It was solid money for the summer between school years and he’d be able to save up some money to make his dream of teaching abroad come true – a goal of his I admire. 

That left us in this interesting spot for communication. 

That first month of communication had been spent gazing at backlit telephones and computer screens. Now, with him living four hours away, we were back at it. 

Sean 🌊 R

New iMessage 

is a regular notification on my screens. 

Tonight, our conversation was about dreams. The science behind them, the recurring ones and what pot does to the typical REM cycle people experience. 

Sean told me about what he had learned in classes. I told him my recurring dreams about tornadoes. He told me about how he hasn’t dreamed a lot in the last eight years. 

It was the kind of conversation we would usually have while laying in bed next to one another, getting ready to drift off. 

And yet, we were doing just that, separated by four hours and 250 miles between us, but connected through these incredible backlit screens. 

I can’t wait to have these conversations with him in person again – hopefully in a couple weeks when he comes back to Michigan – but until then, we still have this small digital connection. 

And there’s always dreams. 

My relationship preferences are no less valid than the next person’s

I went on vacation to relax. I went on vacation to interview with a prospective job. I went on vacation to spend time with one of my best friends.

And what have I gotten from it?

A good prospect for the job, but in turn, I’ve been ridiculed for my relationship choices by my so-called best friend.

It hurts. He’s mocked my relationship. He said, “you guys have been dating a month and he was out in California for part of it? And now you’re down here? What kind of a relationship is that?” Umm… An adult one where we still have separate lives and want to be together?

I chose a relationship that is long distance for a reason. I have a sense of independence with it. I know that I can keep being myself while still having someone there for me. We can see each other when we make time, and we still have our own selves intact. I’ve had issues with relationships consuming my life, losing myself to the other person and putting their opinions and values ahead of my own. That isn’t an issue with long distance relationships for me. It helps me maintain who I am.

He ridiculed my choice to have an LDR because I wouldn’t be able to be with the other person all the time. I wouldn’t be able to touch them. However, in the last six months, I’ve come to realize that being comfortable in my own skin means allowing others to touch me on my terms. I don’t want to always have someone coming up to me and touching me whenever. That’s NOT OK. Human contact is nice, but again, it has to be on MY terms, not someone else’s. That’s part of why consent is such a huge deal. If I don’t want you touching me, don’t touch me.

There is no excuse for him to say that my opinions and preferences for a relationship are any less valid than his. Everyone is different, and if I’ve found someone that gets that, then that’s great. He can find his own thing with someone that gets his preferences.

I’m OK with being alone. I’m OK with being surrounded by people. I’m OK with just being me. I’m glad I’ve taken this trip because it’s helping me re-evaluate the relationships in my life and those that may be poisonous to me and my future. It’s just the start, but I think it could really propel me in the right direction.

The stories he could tell

Today, I found out one of my favorite patrons died. 

Peter Reale was feisty. He was full of stories from his days in the Navy and his time spent as a hair dresser. I got to know him while working at the library. He and his wife, Anne, would come in and read the newspapers together.

They’d chat with us at the check out counter. Peter could talk for days, and Anne was so patient, always waiting for him to wrap up his conversations. The story of how they met is adorable, and I got the chance to write a bit about it while working for CM Life.

After getting leaving the Navy, Reale married Anne in 1949 after meeting her in their state board exam for cosmetology licenses in New York. Reale said he saw her at the exam and knew he had to talk to her.

“She got done, and I said wait for me,” Reale said. “I just yelled it across a room (while) taking an exam.”

He met Anne down the street at the Paramount Theater. They saw the feature film, then watched the vaudeville show after. The two got dinner at a local diner and have been inseparable since.

“It cost 65 cents each for us to have dinner,” Reale said. “Can you imagine that? I had $10 to last me a week. It was so expensive.”

I’m grateful to have gotten to know Peter and Anne. Their love was stronger than a lot of things I’ve seen. I can’t imagine what Anne is going through. My heart goes out to her.

Early summer thoughts

It’s the little things I’m going to miss about Michigan. The way the soft, thin blades of grass feel on the the bottom of my feet in the summer. The smell of petrichor while I’m sitting on the porch of my parents’ house sipping a hot cup of coffee waiting for a storm to blow in. The cool summer nights spent laying in a field in the middle of nowhere, staring at the stars as the world slowly drifts by them.

I’m one step closer to getting my degree. One step closer to moving away from the state that I’ve called home for 23 years. One step closer to becoming an adult in the world. It’s terrifying, but it’s also thrilling.

I’m hoping to move to Austin in six months. It seems like a long time from now, but that’s the same time period that I was with the Jackson Citizen Patriot. It’s a semester and some.

I’ve pushed and pushed to get to where I am now. I’ve been so focused on getting out of college and getting my degree that I haven’t fully appreciated what’s surrounding me for the last few months.

Yes, Michigan is a wonderful place. The natural beauty of it is incredible. I’m grateful to have grown up surrounded by four seasons.

However, my immediate future is not in that state. I’m not 100 percent certain of what the future may hold, but I know that I’m meant for bigger things.

Until I leave, I’m going to appreciate the little things. The summer nights spent eating Doozies with friends. The sand between my toes while I walk along the beach at Lake Michigan. The evenings with my family, no matter how strange they are.

I don’t want to let you down

Joe Hertler and The Rainbow Seekers at South By Southwest

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AUSTIN, TX – Joe Hertler stood alone on a small coffee house stage with a harmonica strapped around his neck, the Michigan flag draped over his shoulders and an acoustic guitar slung across his body.

In 2009, Hertler was playing solo shows at nearly empty bars for little to no money.

Almost six years later, Hertler and his Lansing-based band, Joe Hertler and The Rainbow Seekers, have a record contract. They have spent the last two months touring the country, fulfilling a dream most local bands only hope to achieve.

Read more on MLive.com.

(This article originally appeared online for MLive.com as SXSW coverage of the band. I’m turning it in for homework.)

Brewing up a storm

David Scott works at Grand River Brewery in Jackson, Mich. The Marshall native has worked for multiple breweries across the country and his beer has won many awards.

Tap into welding

David Flack is a Jackson-based welding artist. He has created many pieces from tables to bike racks. Now, he’s working on tap handles for Grand River Brewery in Jackson. Each tap handle takes about an hour to make and most are distributed to bars that sell Grand River beer.