Ellie holding up the Barock castle in Mannheim
After graduating high school, I asked friends and family at my graduation party what was the thing they most regret not doing as they became adults. I thought that I should take the advice of my elders and do what they wished they had done. This way, I would get more out of life and not regret what they did. They told me that they regretted not traveling. They wished they had seen the world more before they got a job and settled down to start a family.
I kept that in mind all through school, which pushed me to study abroad in Marburg, Germany in 2014, while I was still in college. I loved that semester so much that I extended my plane ticket to spend two more months in Marburg and take another German speaking course.
After that semester, I went back to college in the USA, but I was completely different. I had developed a huge love for the German language, and for traveling. I was able to go to Leipzig, Germany in July 2016 for another speaking course, and took a trip with my college to Nicaragua in 2017 for two weeks. But it was not enough. I recognized that I had a passion for traveling, and living abroad for a longer period of time.
As college graduation was approaching, I realized I did not feel ready to go into the workforce. I was not sure that what I had studied was what I really wanted to do for a job. I studied elementary education (grades K-8) and German (ages 0-21). I always wondered if I preferred older students, like 10-18 year-olds. But since I was only licensed to teach German to older students, I was a bit concerned, mainly because the schools in the US do not often offer German as a foreign language. It is usually Spanish. What would I do if I found out I preferred the older students? I would have no subject I could teach them unless German was offered.
I decided that I would move to Germany where I could get my masters in education. I wanted to get licensed for a second subject that I could teach at the high-school level. This way, I would be licensed to teach all levels of students, and I could spend time figuring out which grade was right for me.
My boyfriend and I packed up and set off on a plane two weeks after graduation. I think it is one of the best decisions we have made. I am now completely sure of what I want to do for a job. I realized I really like working with 5th-8th graders. In addition to finding my ideal job, I also have learned more about myself and a whole new culture. I now have a different perspective of life in the US, and am able to live out my desire to travel.
I am so glad I listened to my elders and took their advice and traveled.
“In the end, we only regret the chances we didn’t take, the relationships we were afraid to have, and the decisions we waited too long to make.” – Lewis Carroll