can't go back now

Yesterday when you were young
Everything you needed done was done for you
Now you do it on your own
But you find you're all alone, what can you do?

You and me walk on, walk on, walk on
'Cause you can't go back now

You know there will be days
When you're so tired
That you can't take another step
The night will have no stars
And you'll think you've gone as far
As you will ever get

You and me wak on, walk on, walk on
'Cause you can't go back now

And yeah, yeah, you go where you want to go
Yeah, yeah, be what you want to be
If you ever turn around, you'll see me

I can't really say
Why everybody wishes they were somewhere else
But in the end, the only steps that matter
Are the ones you take all by yourself

You and me walk on, walk on, walk on
Yeah, you and me walk on, walk on, walk on
'Cause you can't go back now
Walk on, walk on, walk on
You can't go back now.

-The Weepies

It's tough here. I'm incredibly busy with school and work. I don't have many friends just yet.

However, I find myself clinging to this deep-seated belief that I am in Boone on purpose. When I walk outside to my car each chilly morning, I am reminded. When I heard about an opportunity to take a course on speech pathology in an international context (complete with a spring break study abroad trip to Guatemala) next semester, I knew that the path I've been following since I was in the 10th grade has lead me here. When I discovered that Appalachian acquired one of the faculty members from the MUSC (Medical University of South Carolina) communication disorders program that dissolved last year, I almost had to laugh. He's not just any faculty member - he was their cleft palate specialist - and he's not just any old cleft palate specialist - all of his work has had a multicultural emphasis. Apparently it is his intention to take students on an Operation Smile trip with him in the summer. Naturally, it is my intention to be one of those students.

Yeah, I'm here for a reason - for a purpose. It's just a matter of settling into it. Besides, I just wrote a check for my out-of-state tuition, and I can't go back now.