"The Answers Aren't In The Back" Girl Between the Lines

This week's Girl Between the Lines post is to talk about what you thought your life would be like now, and how is it similiar and different. Well, let me tell you. I had the hardest time trying to figure out what to write for this. But, finally I found something that floated my boat so here goes nothing.

It's 2014. I'm a sophomore in college, and I will soon be saying buh-bye to my teen years. I can't believe that time has passed as fast as it did. I don't feel like I'm almost 20. I feel the same as I always did. When I was younger, I thought that being in college would mean that I was going to be automatically fabolous and that I was able to put my life together. I would be sophisticated, and know what the hell I was doing. Well, that wasn't true. I came into college not knowing what to expect, and I still don't know what the hell is going on with my life. I've watched so many television shows, as the children went off and went to college. They had a fabolous time, naturally. I expected that my time in college would be something similar to that. As I entered adulthood, I coudn't help but want to know where all the answers were.
That's the thing about life, there's no answers in the back of the book. You're stuck in probelmatic situations with nothing but your brain and your instinct. I guess that I thought that when I got to be this age everything would fall into place, kind of like Cinderella's glass slipper fitting perfectly. I thought that I would have my license for starters. As for the rest of it, I kind of always knew that I wanted to do. I wanted to be a writer, despite the fact that I was unsure what kind of writer I wanted to be. Back then, I thought that I didn't want to be a journalist. Ha, I was wrong.
However, despite not having the answers to everything, I did find one thing that was the same. That I wasn't alone. Over the course of my college career thus far, in addition to high school, I have found some of the most interesting characters that you will ever meet. Each and every one is different. I always kind of knew that I had a lot of friends, and to be able to accumlate so many over a period of time reminds me that I will never be able to go through rocky seas alone. We're all messed up and imperfect in our own ways. But here's the thing-it's okay.
I can't plan or predict what the next few years is going to bring for me. I know that I am going to graduate in two years from May. I know that I want to be a journalist more than anything. But, that's all that I got. Sometimes, I wish that I can pull out some sort of crystal ball and just get the answers. Would I have a boyfriend? Would I be going to graduate school? I guess that the younger, more naive me thought that I would kind of know that by now. However, the older, wiser me begs to differ. I guess part of life is simply not knowing everything. The fun part being that you get to go through a twisted maze to get there. But, hopefully at the end of the day it will be worth it.

"Mi Manchi, Nonno". Girl Between the Lines Post

I am the closest to my grandfather than perhaps any other human being on the planet. He raised me like I was his own child, not a grandchild. When he died of Alzheimer's disease two years ago, my grandma gave me a few of his things. I honestly couldn't decide, because these things each have some sort of value of their own.

The first item is a stuffed monkey, otherwise known as Mr Monkey. Mr. Monkey resides on my bed, has a red T-Shirt. He has a banana in his hand. His tongue is sticking out, and he's a light and furry brown. Mr. Monkey is perhaps one of my favorite stuffed animals, because it kind of reminds me of my grandfather, silly, and always fun. My grandmother gave me him shortly after he died, and he's been one of my most prized possessions.  Whenever I hug him, in some weird way it reminds me of my grandfather. Even though he just sits there, looking
The other two items are his necklaces that was his, or were once his and was made for me. The first one is a necklace that was made from a tie tack. My mom had given it to me for my high school graduation, and I am so glad that she did because even though I rarely wear it it's my favorite piece of jewelry. The other two are gold charms that he used to wear all of the time. The first is a Saint Jude, and the second is an anchor that my mom got him from Hawaii.
I choose these items because I was really close to my grandfather, and I miss him terribly. Therefore, picking just one was a hard thing to do. I miss him more and everyday, so the fact that I own things that he once had has the most value than things that cost thousands of dollars. Whenever I look at these things, I am reminded of his fight, his smile, and the fact that he never once complained during his six year battle with Alzheimer's. Thank you Grandpa, for not only the material possessions, but for the wisdom that you've also left behind. Ti amo, il mio nonno. Mi manchi molto.*

*I love you, my grandpa. I miss you a lot.