It has been universally acknowledged that life is about taking risks, being adventurous, and having new experiences. I can say that my life has been quite an adventure, and I certainly have experienced a whole lot; but when it comes to taking risks, I can hardly name any. From a very young age I had decided that I wanted to become an Architect. I did not fully know what it exactly meant to be an Architect but still, I put all my time and energy towards achieving this unknown goal. It became my passion, and before I knew it, I was in love with it. I have been studying architecture nonstop since eighth grade; I never gave myself a chance to explore anything else, because I never felt the need to. Architecture has been a constant in my life for nearly eight years; when my friends were struggling to figure out what they wanted to do in life, it was comforting to have a burning passion, a drive to become something and not face any uncertainties. But as I progressed with my degree in college, I was losing that drive and passion that I had once felt so strongly. So after all these years, when I suddenly figured that being an Architect might not be the best for me, how was I going to just abandon something that has been there for me through everything? After all it’s not easy to forget your first love.
Reading and writing has always been a hobby of mine, and that’s all it was to me. I never gave it much thought. However, one day I found myself in Brooklyn looking at the Manhattan skyline, ablaze in the setting sun on one side, and the silhouette of the Statue of Liberty across the river on another, and all I wanted to do was write about the wonder that I felt; The waves carrying the burning orange sun; the boats spraying mists of water as they passed in the distance, and the way the cluster of buildings looked like fiery logs in a pit of a burning furnace. That’s when I realized that I will never stop loving Architecture.
I was walking around with this internal battle of guilt for not loving Architecture as much as I used to, and a feeling of restlessness for having to carry on doing something that did not make me happy. Then one day I went to Professor Paul King for advisement, as we started talking I started opening up to him and for the first time expressed how I had been feeling for months. It was his idea to explore the possibility of me writing about Architecture. I felt a great relief for I was given an easy way out of my distress, and would no longer have to feel guilty of not wanting to become an Architect. As I embark on this new and exciting adventure, with the guidance of Professor King, I feel like for the first time I am taking a risk and delving into the unknown with all the wonderful doubts and uncertainties that I never got to experience.