Since graduating in May, I’ve felt tossed around more than a few times. I know what it is to let circumstances dictate the kind of friend I’ll be and the kind of day I’ll have. Things that feel urgent constantly rise up and demand my attention, from the time I wake up until the time I go to bed. For the past few months, nearly every day has looked different, and I hid behind my jobs to excuse myself from the hard work of discipline.
Read MoreFor the postgraduate seeking to transgress or assume an affirmative stance on an issue of importance to her, resistance comes in the shape of familiar inquiries: How will that pay your bills? Who’s going to want to buy that? Do you really think you’re capable? These are questions adults use to keep one another in their respective places, and it makes sense.
Read MoreWindrose Magazine is available in ONE WEEK!
Read MoreI turned 24 on Tuesday.
My first instinct was to look at the people around me. The ones posting on social media.
They’d written books, were writing articles for magazines I still only dream will send me an acceptance letter one day. They’d started podcasts. Spent two years living in Asia. Found the loves of their lives. Wore diamond rings on the fourth finger of their left hands. Spoke at the United Nations. Worked in refugee camps around the world.
Read MoreSince we’re more than halfway through the year (is anyone else startled by this?), I thought it would be good to take a look back at some of the posts shared here within this li’l Internet space.
Here are the Top 10 Most-Read Posts of 2017 (So Far). Enjoy a look back!
Read MoreThe first year of graduate school for me was incredible, amazing, life-changing, and HARD. Transitioning straight into grad school from my four years of undergrad, I approached grad school as an opportunity to grow and learn on a personal level, while also growing in the classroom. As my friends and former classmates were celebrating new jobs and new cities, I dove back into the books for a quick two more years.
Throughout my first year of graduate school, I learned a few things that will stay ingrained in me for many years to come.
Read MoreI have been noticing another shift. A strange one, but somewhat welcomed. I am getting older and the thoughts I have and habits I have adopted have proven this to me. How many of these signs have you noticed in your lives?
Read MoreWe made a magazine, y'all.
Read MoreEven so, I’ve been surprised at the feeling of worthlessness that has come alongside this period of quiet. The questions in my mind of, what am I contributing to anybody? Am I allowed to still be “resting” or is this really just laziness now? Is everyone around me wondering what I’m doing with my time? Am I paranoid to be thinking like this? If I’m secure in my identity and my decisions about how to spend my time, where has this fear of worthlessness come from?
Read MoreWhen I went home every summer, being back with my parents and having a different set of expectations placed upon me made friction inevitable. Far away in the UK, I could deal with familial disagreements by ignoring text messages or putting off video calls, but back home I had to face them head on. This often resulted in arguments or unfriendly responses and ultimately, I was left dissatisfied with my relationship with my parents.
Read MoreThe main topic of conversation my senior year was, of course, how will we all stay friends? After graduation, we’d be going different directions. Live in different cities, have different jobs. We’d spent so long being just a few floors apart in the dorms, and we were worried.
Read MoreIt feels like I haven’t taken a breath since February. Five months since a job hunt began, since stress took over, since I spent every hour of every day trying to figure out where I wanted to live, what I wanted to do, trying and failing, and failing, and failing to make things work. To get hired. To try the freelance lifestyle. To cook meals with nutrients instead of trans fat and to get my body moving. To finish a passion project while my time was unrestricted.
I failed at so many things, and from the outside it looked like I was barely moving. But it felt like I’d never worked harder in my life.
Read MoreBy not making any decisions, I had made my decision. Life was happening all around me, it was happening to me, but I had no role in it. Weeks passed, and I decided I didn’t want to be a bystander in my own story. I wanted to do. I wanted to choose.
Read MoreDo you write? Hi, me too, and many of That First Year’s readers moonlight (or daylight—power to those with the full-time writing gig!) as writers. So I thought it might be helpful to make a list of 6 things that have helped me in my writing endeavors.
Read MoreSome of us create because it is what we want to do with our lives. Others create because it makes life a lot more interesting. Regardless, we are all creative creatures, whether that’s creating on a canvas, creating in the kitchen, or creating with a camera.
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