Journey to Me

I was just thinking about independence day and what it means to me. I decided to brush up on my history and read about the historical importance of today: the American Revolution, the Declaration of independence and what it meant as far as solidifying the United States as an independent country. Then I made an important decision, I am truly proud to be an an American.

Saying this out loud sounded weird to me. I have probably only said this phrase less than a handful of times in my life (that I can recall): September 11, 2001, President Obama's inauguration,...and today. And then I thought about it. How many times have I said to anyone, "I am American"? I'm black, yes. But, American? I'm not so sure. Does the fact that I was born in America make me American? Sure. If I was born in Germany, I guess I'd be German. *shrugs* What does it truly mean to be American? The few times I can recall telling anyone I'm American was meeting a group of people from the Caribbean and the first question is "What are you?" (Jamaican, Lucian, Bahamian, etc.) I would reply (as I identified myself), "I'm black," and someone would politely say, "No, where are you from?" "Florida!" LOL...I never really thought of myself as American. That's not really what comes to mind first as far as how I identify myself.

I am American and proud!

Happy Independence Day !

Thanks to the men who were brave enough throughout the American Revolution to establish our freedoms...and the soldiers today who fight to protect them!!


I haven't posted in a while. I'm on so many different social networking sites (facebook, twitter, tumblr, this one..I think that's it lol), I figured I share enough of myself everywhere else. I've kind of neglected my blog, which is the one place where I feel like I can share my inner thoughts without worrying about a stupid character limit. Alot has changed and happened since my last post in April...

I talked about the change of major. I'm currently considering my options and trying to put together a plan for what I'd like to do after graduation in December 2012. I have recently opened up to the idea of teaching out of state. I have currently added Texas, North Carolina, and Georgia to the list of places I wouldn't mind moving to. I'd have someone I know, either family or a family friend, in each of those places. If moving can't happen for me, I'm working on making it a possibility to teach at the high school I went to. I've been trying to meet with someone to make sure I'm qualified and see what openings they may have within the next year or so. I'm realistic about the cuts in education and the fact that it may not be as easy as it sounds to get a job as a teacher. My dad proposed the idea of me joining the Navy, which I almost did right out of high school. I'm not opposed to that, but that option is only if I can't find a job within 6 months after graduation (gotta get those student loans paid!) OR if I do start teaching and maybe it isn't exactly right for me. The biggest pro for me about the Navy is that if/when I get my Master's degree, I have a sure way to pay for it without taking out anymore loans or living like a broke college student again. I just know that whatever happens after graduation, I'll be FINE!

I've also had ridiculous amounts of roommate drama. Living with friends can either go great or horrible. We've had some great times, but boy when things are bad, they're BAD. I don't really care to get into what happened.

I don't know what else there is to say. Life is good right now. Summer classes started about a week ago and are going well so far, despite how much work it is. No one said it would be easy. Once the summer term is over, I have 11 classes until I'm finished! It feels good to have come this far! This school year is going to be a lot of work. Depending on how I work my schedule, I could graduate as early as next summer. By December of next year, I'll for sure be finished!

As always, thanks for reading!

~LaDai