And there are quite a few of you out there. Little tip from
a woman abroad: there will be good day, there will be bad days, and there will
be days that are a mix and thus very confusing.
Today I met with my mentor teacher which was amazing. She is
this fantastic woman who is very warm and affectionate. She has a son my age
and told me I could be her daughter. She also told me to be really strict my
first day teaching because I look like a teenager! But she was great about
answering all of my questions, offering advice, and really focusing on what I
needed to know to ensure I had a rewarding experience in Burgas.
I was informed I will be teaching 9th grade
English, 10th grade English and as an added plus 11th
grade literature!!! I am very excited about that because I get to teach a lot
of culture, discussion, and even act out plays. It will give me a chance to
teach different subjects (because trust me they are different here!) and
interact with more students. I want to also get involved with the BFL, the
Bulgarian Forensic League which means I would run a debate team at my school,
participate in the Corplus spelling bee camp, and help out with the drama
program.
This is of course, all along with my research project and
personal project to set up feminism and empowerment groups. The support has
been amazing here and I feel like I will be ready to enter that classroom
energized and ready to impact lives.
Which brings up a huge point- you can’t impact someone
else’s life in a positive way if you are not comfy with who you are and set
with who you are. I want to warn all potential Fulbrighters out there of that
because it is essential. I spent a few years in college really figuring out who
I was, what I wanted to do, who I wanted to be each day and how important it
was to constantly re-evaluate and not stay “stuck.” I highly recommend trying
this, explore yourself to the fullest so you know your strengths and
weaknesses. So you know where you can help and when you need to ask for help.
Remember asking for help will get you through the rough patches.
Which leads to the bad part of today- homesick. I miss my
mom so much. Like I said this summer was really horrible before I left. I spent
most of it in court, or packing up my house quickly to move. I lost family, I
had to face the fact that it is ok to not be ok, and worse that I am like
Doctor Who: “Of course I’m ok, I’m always ok, I am the king of ok.”
So today I am very homesick, I want to curl into a ball and
cry, I want to contact all of my friends just to hear their voices, and I want
them to tell me it is ok, that I am still there with them as they are here in
my heart. But instead it is 10 pm here, I have Bulgarian language homework, and
as usual I will be the perfect adult and do my homework, prepare my lesson
plans, and focus on impacting someone else’s life before focusing on making
myself feel better. Because through all of that I will garner hope and
inspiration and in the end I need to depend on that over people.
I don’t think I know just yet when I became an activist.
When I overcame being the second child who didn’t sit at home but instead
looked up everywhere I could be of us. But it isn’t easy. I will leave you with
a hopeful thought (besides that my teaching schedule is amazing, and my mentor
teacher is lovely) when I was down the other Fulbrighter’s here, they all
reached out. They saw me falling and they caught me. I couldn’t ask for a
better group over here. We look out for each other, joke with each other, form “Southern
Region Rangers,” and joke about stupid ways to die and how to eat out of an egg
bowl.
It makes me think of “A
Series of Unfortunate Events” the film when Violet reads the letter at the end:
It's the letter, the letter that never came. [reading aloud] "Dearest Children,
Since we have been abroad we have missed you all so much. Certain events have
compelled us to extend our travels. One day, where you're older, you will learn
all about the people we've befriended and the dangers we have faced. At times
the world can seem an unfriendly and sinister place, but believe us when we say
there is much more good in it than bad. All you have to do is look hard enough.
And what might seem to be a series of unfortunate events, may, in fact, be the
first steps of a journey. We hope to have you back in our arms soon, darlings;
but in case this letter arrives before our return, know that we love you. It
fills us with pride to know that, no matter what happens in this life, you
three will take care of each other with kindness, and bravery and selflessness
as you always have. And remember one thing my darlings and never forget it:
that no matter where we are, know that as long as you have each other, you have
your family and you are home. Your loving parents."
I cant tell you truly readers that people are still out
there that will help you with kindness and give you bravery when yours is
faltering.
Anna
Today's song is "Rewrite this Story" I can tell you that getting to Bulgaria is definitely helping me tweak mine!
I am here and finally settled in.
It was a crazy trip getting here as the airline I was flying didn’t tell me
they contracted out my flight to an airline that was on the opposite side of
the airport. Thankfully I was able to see Michael before I left in the airport
and got on a shuttle with my mom and sister to dash to my flight.
Dashing!
The flight was fun, met nice
people, made friends. But I became very sick and barely made it through the
airport in France to my next flight. But perseverance is my best friend and I
was able to keep pushing through to get to my gate. I spent that flight from
Paris to Sophia basically unconscious as I kept throwing up and the flight
attendant personally kept feeding my lemon slices and putting ice on my ears.
Again I didn’t think I could keep going, but I got off the flight and got it
together. Got on a bus and made it to the resort I am staying at for my
language training!
The past few days have been hectic,
I take 3 hours of Bulgarian language and 3 hours of ETA training everyday.
Already I can translate the alphabet, conjugate some verbs, formulate
sentences, read a paragraph, discuss nationalities, learned the gender
identifiers, and apparently according to my professor I have “excelled very
quickly and she is pleased.” So, a lot of learning packed into 2 days!!
Today the group of Fulbright ETA’s
all went swimming together which was amazing because I can’t have my arm in the
water until a week after my tattoo, and everyone joined in on making sure I
didn’t slip up and taking pictures. We then all hit the sauna together. There
were these amazing saunas between the Russian one, which was super dark and
intense but very hot and relaxing. Between that and the Finnish and steam
saunas it was heaven. I ended up relaxing in the herbal sauna and meditating! I
came to Bulgaria to change the world here as much as possible but I get two
weeks of intense learning as well as sweet relaxation before I begin!
Meeting all the Fulbrighter’s here
has been a great experience. We are all academics who want to impact even a
small portion of the world so these people have been a true joy to encounter.
Every morning we have enthusiastic discussions about sociology or other
disciplines and even while sitting in the sun we discuss the impacts of
genocide. We just enjoy each others company and we keep each other motivated
when jet lag sets in. I just can’t believe I am lucky enough to have this
experience and get to interact with these fantastic and passionate people. I
can’t even describe how nice it is to be around “kindred spirits” as Sarah (another
amazing ETA) puts it.
I just remember being in undergrad
and knowing such negative people that had hopes and dreams of their own but
would stomp on mine, and when I would say I was going to make a difference they
would tell me that no one was ever going to listen to me. Well a hell of a lot
of people had to listen to me when I graduated because I was the commencement
speaker and I was a force to be reckoned with. And now I will be changing this tiny part of the world
before moving to keep spreading positive change, equality, and hope. I’m not
letting negative people get to me, I refuse to let someone else write the
ending to my story!
totally me!
It has been tough adjusting. I left
my mother during the most difficult time of her life. We were evicted from our
home before I left, had serious trauma and we are still recovering. To leave
her now was very hard, and it has been hard coping with everything that
happened before my departure. But I just keep thinking about the Lord of the
Rings: I made a promise Mr. Frodo, a promise- ‘Don’t you leave him Samwise
Gamgi’ and I don’t mean to.”
Well I made a promise to take this
journey head on no matter what trauma, no matter the pain or heart ache, and no
matter how much I miss my kitten! I made a promise to myself and to my future
students that I would take this journey to change lives and I can’t let trauma
stop me. I was lucky to have my friends and my amazing Godfather George there to constantly check in and tell me just get to Bulgaria, just GET THERE. I miss them all, especially my godfather who is just my inspiration for who I am as a person most of the time and my sarcastic personality-he just gets me and even when he doesn't agree with my decisions he supports me. That's a true loving family member, I am hoping to connect with him while abroad, and I think that would just make this trip truly the trip of my life.
Fawlty Towers is the show the encompasses our humor!
So dear readers, after a long trip
and horrible jet lag I am now sitting here making plans for after FISI
(Fulbright International Summer Institute) to travel through Croatia down to
Macedonia and back to Bulgaria. It’s a night of planning with Alex K, Aviva,
Sarah, Katie, and guest appearances from all ETA’s eager to see the world and make
an impact. Can’t wait to keep you posted!!!
Anna
Tonight's song is from SMASH called "Don't Forget Me" it is about Marilyn Monroe and how she was a special person who just needed more care and concern instead of being bought. I love this song because I feel like there are so many people out there like me that need a bit of extra care to help them excel...so if you see someone who is hurt, and if you know me at all-remember me when they need help. I wouldn't have made it to Bulgaria without a lot of help and care and concern-thus my last post!
The
final count down has begun! I leave this weekend! I finished my Dr. Who
inspired farewell tour seeing all my friends and inspirations. Saw “Percy
Jackson and The Sea Of Monsters” (great Firefly reference in there btw for all
your brown coats out there,) went to Bonkers, this arcade place I grew up going
to, had lunch with all the professors I possibly could, and packed…the
re-packed! This will be my last post pre-departure so I thought I would treat
this like the program it is to the main event. (Yes, theatre people I am
comparing Fulbright and my goals to a play, my great friend Kinney will enjoy
this reference!)
THE
PLAYERS:A.K.A. all the people who helped me, encouraged me, or just let me do what I
needed to do to be who I am today.
If
there is one thing about my life that truly makes it worth living to the
fullest it is that all of my family and friends are very different, we come from
and pursue all walks of life, and we support each other in our differences.
The
Cat:
Princess
is the love of my life, she makes me joyously happy and yells at me whenever
she is upset. You have no idea how much I love this cat. Just. NO. IDEA! I will
miss her so much while away and she goes on hunger strikes when I live abroad
so I will literally have to skype her every week to make sure she is eating. My
kitty and I are connected after 14 years together, inseparable!
Family:
My
mom:My mother likes to say that she checked me out of the restricted section
of the library. I am tall unlike
my family, I don’t have the same physical make up that my family does, and I’m
rather odd. She also thinks she failed because I am a trekkie! Yet recently my
mother saw me pack and brought me in a shirt I needed for my trip, I told her
she could place it near the bowtie on the floor. Her response? “Because
obviously that is going.” To which I responded: “Do I detect sarcasm?”…her
response? “No…resignation.”
My
mom has resigned herself to the fact that I am odd, and she loves me anyways.
Even when she did not like my choice of colleges she came around and now
advocates for my school non-stop to people who put it down. She really embraces
who I am and what I want to do in life including moving to Rwanda to work with
genocide victims there. She represents the essence of mom- she watches movies
she hates with me because I love them, she backs my wanting to travel and be abroad,
she encourages me to do so and when I told her I was going she said it was the
best birthday present she could have. My mom stood by me through being
terminally ill, through not being allowed an education, through my choosing 3
majors and 4 minors, flying to Cuba, moving to Prague, getting tattoos,
piercing my nose, and choosing to pursue an unusual concentration in Sociology.
She works to set a great example for the woman I should be, and even when life
hit her with a brick wall, she went all “Harry Potter night bus” on it and
plowed through. She’s my mom, and I’m glad to be her daughter.
Kate:
I have this midget sister, usually it is the younger sibling that is always
“about” the older one but my sister is definitely my biggest fan. To me, we are
polar opposites. She is a journalist and I hate journalists, I have a degree in
ethics so it is a long standing rivalry ;) She liked Nsync, I’m all about
Jackson Brown. She’s 4’11, I’m 5’6. I’m a crazy academic who protests makeup
companies and ads targeting women; she’s a fashionista. Sufficed to say we are
an interesting pair. But the key word there is: pair. Without the other we
don’t complete the ying-yang. She will be visiting me in London for Doctor
Who’s 50th celebration and will help me “kidnap” Matt Smith!
My
sister doesn’t get jealous that I have a Fulbright and get to have this
journey. I ended up saying goodbye to some friends this year because they
couldn’t find it in them to be happy for me instead of jealous. But my sister
instead is encouraging my going even though she’s going to miss me. That’s a
pretty great sister. And yes we may be polar opposites, but I did beat kids up
for her in pre-school, and she’d follow me anywhere. Beat. That.
Nunny:omg omg omg I have this adorable Nunny. Seriously, a world without Nunny is no
world worth living in. Nunny loves me regardless of how sick I am, what I look
like, what I study, where I go, who I love, how I dress etc. She is always
there to great me with a hug, a smile, and a cookie to try and get me to gain
weight. I can tell you honestly I wouldn’t be the caring person I am without
her. She remembers everyone birthdays, their cats names, what your favorite
flower is. She just is the epitome of humanity and comes in an adorable
package. I will miss her like crazy this year.
The
Aunts and Uncles: I am blessed to have a variety of family members who range from
being nurses to musicians. They’ve watched me grow up and worried about my
health, my happiness, and where I am going in life. But seeing them recently
they all cheer me on with the phrase “Anna for president!” They will support me
from afar, but I will miss seeing them for holidays this year.
Family
That Are Disguised As Friends:
The
Salem State Philosophy Department:Beautiful people, overwhelmingly caring and
kind. They took a History major who was broken after a tragic event in, and
turned me into a critical thinking, passionate, open, driven, intelligent
warrior. An activist without reserve. And even after graduating they still
support me, check in on me, see me for lunches, care about my life, and share
theirs with me. They are the reason I made it through college so successfully,
and any student who learns from them at the University is better for having
known them.
Michael:I had to make up an Italian exam one day and happened upon this professors
office who was discussing bee’s purpose in life. Overhearing the conversation I
felt…happy. I had to find out what this man taught so I could feel that again.
I looked up his spring schedule, joined the honors program to take his course
on “Phenomenology.” One day in class he was explaining the perception of “desk”
and was running back and forth demonstrating and ran INTO the desk. Laughing it
off he continued to keep teaching and in that moment I knew this man would help
change my life.
We
celebrated our friendaversary in January and started our 5th year of
supporting each other, inspiring each other, and always being there to cheer
each other on. When I went back to Michael and said I wanted to take a year off
of my graduate program to do a Fulbright, he never doubted I would succeed. He
said pick the country, let me know when my letter of recommendation is due and
how can I help?
It
never mattered to him when I thought I wasn’t good enough, or when life got so
rough for me that I worried I wouldn’t make it through everything I planned-he
just told me I would make it, that he’d never met someone like me, who thought
like me, or worked like me. To just be me. It takes a good friend to support
you, it takes a great friend to tell you to be who you are without any
addendums or modifications. Michael, I am proud to know you, I am proud you are
my best friend, and I am proud of who you are. Thank you for always being proud
of me.
It's not "goodbye" it's "hello"
“M”:Until I get permission from M to use their name, we will just use the initial.
M is my mentor, she is amazing and down to earth. She can look at me and put
everything into perspective while still making me feel better about the
situation. M believed in me, encouraged me, and never told me that learning the
basics was a waste of time. She went above and beyond to help me feel like I
could do anything, to tell me that I am better than I believe and to be proud
of me.
Kaylee:One of my most unique friends is Kaylee. People of the blogosphere I can tell
you that life without Kaylee, to me would cause a hole. Kaylee is a go getter,
she never gives up, and is one of the hardest workers I know. When I recently
had to move she showed up without me needing to ask, started taping boxes
together and just took charge. But besides being strong, a light in the
darkness and kind-Kaylee is fantastic with animals.
I
remember the first time she was really introduced to me she was making Star
Wars jokes with Michael at the MFA in the elevator. LOVE AT FIRST WORD! Years
later we still get to see each other often, go to Josh Whedon movies, make
Nathan Fillion and Gile’s jokes, share in the joy of loving animals more than
humans, and just celebrate each others life choices!
Cayla:I was in Michaels office one day and this woman walks in: red hair braided in
an effortless way, green pants with paint covering them, blue shirt, and runs
in saying she is running late for her studio time and forgot her art box on his
shelf. I soon learned that was the “Cay shelf” in Michaels office which was my
excuse to get my own shelf later! She turns around and sees me there on a
chair, head in a book, not speaking and asks, “Who’s the new recruit?” Little did I know she would end up the
Philosophy Club President and would choose me as her successor, setting my path
without ever knowing it.
Cayla
reached out before any other member of the philosophy club, she loved me
harder, she kept me closer, and she protected me. She’s this fantastic artist
who is a free spirit if there ever was one. She cares about people, and above
all else she just loves. Cayla, if
you read this, I will never be able to tell you how grateful I am to have your
love and to be able to love you and share in your life.
Vicky:If you met her you would understand how amazing she is. God this girl just can
do anything and is so humble about it! She is an empath if there ever was one,
cares, reaches out, excels at school while living a down to earth life. She’s a
fantastic aunt who cares about her niece more than anyone and she would lay
down her life for her worst enemy in a second. Vicky is my Mina, I met her at
Music Man auditions when she nicknamed me “college pipes” because of how I
sing. We bonded, and had sleepovers, and a beautiful friendship emerged. One
day I fully expect to be co-raising her kids with her and taking them to little
league, cheering them on like she cheers me on every day.
There
isn’t a way to describe Vicky to show how extreme, outgoing, passionate, and
beautiful she is. I’ve got her back, and can’t wait to send her pictures of her
homeland-Romania and Greece!
Senor
Fitzgibbons:My high school teacher, who never quit on me. I was horrible with
language and he never told me that. He told me keep trying, never quit, take it
a word at a time and don’t be afraid to admit I can’t do something at that moment, because I could learn to
do it with help. I only got to take his course for a few months, but I carried
his lessons with me into college and beyond. He has this strength of faith,
paired with a determination to impact his students lives and without that
example I wouldn’t have been so prepared for this trip.
Kalin,
Julie, Ashley, Martin, Courtney, Britta, Peter, Aimee, Kacey, Kinney, Melissa:All of you made me a better person. You brought light into my life, you
included me in your joys and you inspired me in different ways. I am truly
thrilled to know all of you!
I am excited to go, but sad to leave. As they say in Doctor Who:
Idris: I've been looking for a word. A big, complicated word but so sad. I've found it now.
The Doctor: What word?
Idris: "Alive." I'm alive.
The Doctor: Alive isn't sad.
Idris: It's sad when it's over. I'll always be here. But this is when we
talked. And now, even that has come to an end. There's something I
didn't get to say to you.
The Doctor: Goodbye.
Idris: No. I just wanted to say... hello. Hello, Doctor. It's so very, very nice to meet you.
I leave soon...so "If you have something to say, say it to me now." Anna
Wow, my blog had 77 reads in the first day,
across America as well asSpain
and Canada. So apparently, you readers are out there. No pressure haha.
Part 1- WHAT FULBRIGHT IS:
I thought I’d explain exactly what Fulbright is, and what I
will be doing abroad! The website states that my Student Fulbright is:
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program provides grants for
individually designed study/research projects or for English Teaching
Assistantships. A candidate will submit a Statement
of Grant Purpose defining activities to take place during one
academic year in a participating country outside the U.S.
During their grants, Fulbrighters will meet, work, live with and learn from the
people of the host country, sharing daily experiences. The program facilitates
cultural exchange through direct interaction on an individual basis in the
classroom, field, home, and in routine tasks, allowing the grantee to gain an
appreciation of others’ viewpoints and beliefs, the way they do things, and the
way they think. Through engagement in the community, the individual will
interact with their hosts on a one-to-one basis in an atmosphere of openness,
academic integrity, and intellectual freedom, thereby promoting mutual
understanding.
To apply for my Fulbright I had to write a personal statement
explaining: why I chose Bulgaria, what research I had read pertaining to my
research topic and how I wanted to expand upon or contest that research, how I
planned on doing it, what background I had to prove I could conduct this
research, proof that I could handle living there for a year, proof I could
learn a language in less than a month etc. Then I had to submit an ETA essay
explaining my background in teaching, how I would teach my students, why I
wanted to teach them, what community activity I wanted to start, why etc. Could
I be a good ambassador for America while still embracing Bulgaria?
Long story short…I learned conversational Czech in a month
living in Prague, and once I thought about that I knew I could handle anything.
I am horrible at languages, but I will try anything to make a difference! I
wrote my essays, which both can only be ONE PAGE IN LENGTH. If you are thinking
“wow that is so much to pack into a page…” yes, yes it is. I was lucky, I had a
fantastic English professor at my undergrad institution who read every draft
and helped me use each word carefully. And when it felt like I should just give
up, I look at my college graduation photo and remembered everything I never
thought I could do that I did…and began again.
PART 2- THE PLAN:
My plan! Mwahahaha! I am moving to Bourgas, Bulgaria for a
year. I found research on Bulgaria done in 2008/09 that showed how Bulgaria had
made a promise to move towards gender equality; however the researcher found
there were still major gaps in education. I think it is underlying cultural
norms that over time lead to gender disparity in education and so will conduct
a qualitative study to test my hypothesis and then look for solutions to
decrease the gap.Gender equality is one of the few things that I think can make a difference for future generations. Without education, tolerance, acceptance, equality, and an end to the "isms,"...well let's just say I don't want to dream of a world like that. Equality for all, or equally we fall.
Besides that I will teach at the Foreign Language High
school, 9th and 10th grade History in English and set up
an after school program for females to encourage them to pursue university and
set career goals. I will also run the debate team at my high school, tutor,
interact a lot with outreach programs in the area, travel, etc. (Too many plans, too many goals to list)
In the end I want to be able to look at my students and know
I impacted how they view going to university, for them to know I am there for
them and to leave Bulgaria with a little bit of “Anna sass” ;)
Part 3- SUMMATION:
Fulbright is a very lengthy, tiresome, and scary application
process to go through. Once you finish your essays that you work months on, you
then submit your application so that your university can read it, then you are
given a panel interview date. Your university selects a panel of different
professors to read your application, critique it, offer suggestions, then
interview you based on criteria they have decided makes you prepared to be
their Fulbright candidate. My interview, I will not lie, was intense,
disheartening, odd, and I honestly walked out thinking they were not going to
recommend me for this fellowship. Whatever that committee said in their
recommendation, however, must have been great because I am a Fulbright
recipient! After you do your interview you have a week to take all their advice
and changes to heart, re-write your application and re-submit. Then you wait
for about 4 months to find out if you made it to the final round of selection.
Fulbright choose 1.5 to 2 x the number of grants from the first round to pass
into the final round. Then the final committee’s meet and pick the recipients,
and the alternates for each country. You wait anywhere from 2 more months, to 5
more months to know your fate. I was very lucky and found out 3 days before my
birthday that I was selected! I was in my graduate course on Social Problems,
and ran into the hall to call my family and friends. Me, the person who shows
up to class the second I am not contagious with swine flu-ran out of the
class thinking only of telling the world.
The process can be grueling, but it is worth it. I know it
sounds scary, and honestly it is. But it is the best scary experience you will
have in your life. I don’t regret a moment of it, and now I have the
opportunity to make not only my dreams, but other peoples dreams a reality.
And that is Fulbright, and my research plans in a nutshell!!
Today's song choice is "Vienna" which details a young person rushing towards achieving what they want, while needing to slow down and think about what is waiting for them. I worried a lot before applying that I would be missing the world in front of me if I rushed into this, but thankfully I find that it is with this that I will find what is waiting for me.
Dear reader whomever you are, I am the overwhelmingly grateful recipient of a Fulbright Fellowship, spending 2013-2014 in Bourgas, Bulgaria. That may sound like gibberish, or some elitist phrasing. But imagine, if you will your greatest dream. Take a deep breath, close your eyes, and imagine the thing you want most in life, the thing you dream about at night when you know you won't want to wake up in a few hours to face the hum drum of every day. The happy place you go to when everything is going wrong. The idea that keeps you going, that spark that helps you be the "little engine that could." Now, once you have your dream, try to imagine achieving it, whatever it is. It's a feeling like no other right? You feel like your chest is tight from the inability to breath in any more air, because you have already sucked in too much with joy. You don't want to open your eyes, because you fear reality will force you to crash back from Narnia, or Hogwarts, or Middle Earth.
My home in Pravets while I study
Well, here's the thing: Rory: But I don't understand. Why am I here?The Doctor:
Because you are. The Universe is big. It's vast and complicated and
ridiculous. And sometimes—very rarely—impossible things just happen and
we call them miracles. And that's the theory. Nine hundred years, never
seen one yet. But this would do me. Now get upstairs. She's Amy and
she's surrounded by Romans. I'm not sure history could take it.
I love Doctor Who and he always has an appropriate quote. Sometimes impossible things happen, because life IS vast, complicated, and ridiculous. My impossible thing happened and I was awarded the fellowship of my dreams. And here's the other thing: I worked really, really, hard to get it. I triple majored, quadruple minored in college, ran dozens of clubs while serving on over 20 committees, volunteered, and was admitted to 4 honors societies. I did the improbable in pursuit of the impossible. Now, why would I list all that? I am not an egotist by any means. My advisers actually wanted to re-write my personal statements for me thinking they were understatements. No, I am no egotist, but I am a true believer in hope. It seems that every student at my undergraduate university believes that they are not as good as a Harvard student because they go to SSU. They say "No, they wouldn't take me, I went to Salem State."
It's like looking into a fairy tale
Dear Fellow Vikings, I am here to tell you that they will take you. That you are amazing. That you do the improbable every day and that you of all people can achieve the impossible because you are vikings. I am here to tell you that I am about to embark on my impossible dream. My dream to affect change, to work with women in high schools and encourage them to pursue a university degree, to inspire students and find the truth of cultural views on gender, and to spread a love of learning. So, if you are out there-I am just like you, with my long shots, my dreams, a history of rejections with a future of acceptances. I'll be chronicling my miracle of a year, and I invite you to join me. Never give up, and for extra encouragement view the video below! It will help you believe that crazy dreams come true. Anna
