#2B Three Significant Events (freewrite, 10 minutes)

     The single most important event that had the most impact on my current career goals would be when my father died in 2002.  I was just in middle school at the time, and really didn't know what I wanted to do with my life.  I probably would have ended up staying at my home, attending a different university much like the other people from my hometown do.  After my father died I realized that this wasn't really what I wanted to do.  I was lucky enough to meet my current fiancée then, and that also attributed to me going a different direction with my life.  Instead of staying at home, I decided that I needed to venture out of my normal realm and challenge myself in new ways with the hopes that in the end I would grow greatly.  Since coming to college I can certainly say that this event changed my life completely.  I couldn't be happier with my current situation, and it seems as if I was almost destined to be at George Mason University with plans to be married to the love of my life in just under 5 months.

     Another event that played an important impact on my current career goals would when I took and passed my Microsoft Office certification.  As I said in my other freewrite, my teacher in high school pushed me to do it, and I couldn't be any happier that I listened to her and actually followed through with it.  By doing this test, I broadened my horizons and realized that I actually wanted to move into a computer related field, which led me to be where I am today.

     The final event that had an impact on my current career goals was my study abroad trip to Paris.  This month long journey to Europe completely changed my viewpoints on the United States and now I almost would rather live there than here.  During my stay there I learned to handle and appreciate other cultures in a new way which in turn opened my love for the area and my love for traveling in general.  Since being there I have decided that after college I most definitely want to move overseas to work and live.  The area was just so compellingly beautiful and life changing that I cannot wait to go back, and when I do I hope I can stay for a much longer time.  By opening my mind to traveling and seeing that I actually love it, I am now more than willing to travel anywhere and work anywhere after college.  I feel this will be the biggest life-changer in the future as I can only broaden my viewpoints further by traveling and seeking out new things, and since my fiancée plans to travel a lot with job related activities our lifestyles should piece together almost perfectly.