...still working on it.
I definitely have one major event in my life that could be "considered" a coming-of-age moment, and that would be my Japan trip over the summer.
I got to go to Japan with 31 other high school students across the nation, who all loved the country as much as I do, and talk with other students in Japanese. Whie, this sounds like me just hanging out with a bunch of other high school kids, it was more about me figuring out what I want to do after high school.
I've known for a while now that I want to major in Japanese, become an expert in the language, and then go off to have a job using my major, hopefully while living in Japan as well. But I'm also kind of a mama's girl, as in, my mom's probably one of my best friends, and I've NEVER coped well with being away from her for long periods of time. This trip was actually the longest I've ever been away from her. I was by myself for the plane ride to Los Angeles, and while in Japan we ended up with quite a big amount of free time to go explore on our own, without supervision. It was a huge first for me, considering every single trip I've had, I've been with an adult for the majority of it, and when I wasn't, I had to let them know exactly where I was going, and I had to have my phone on me just in case they needed to reach me, which made me feel like I was still being watched over by them. I mean, I wasn't complaining, I was having a good time regardless, but this was the first time I truly felt like I was able to watch out for myself, not another adult.
I think I am more ready to go off to college and be on my own because of this. I had to practice money management (okay, it's a stretch, but I had to make sure that I bought food along with all my gifts to bring back home), I had responsibilities, and I made sure all my assignments got done. I also realized that graduation isn't that far away. I'm about to be thrust into the real world, whether I like it or not, and I need to be as close to prepared as possible. I'm just really glad that I had this trip, because it feels like it brought me 10 steps closer.
