Looking Back on a Year at Cambridge

Saying goodbye to my father
before departing for Cambridge.

I'll never forget the trip I took from my family's home in Arizona late last September. I set off for England to start my master's degree at Trinity College in the University of Cambridge. I had just finished a whirlwind trip around the US after 14 months of travel; I was sleep deprived, whiplashed by the sudden life changes, and apprehensive to be moving to another country again. I remember the bus ride from Heathrow to Cambridge. I hadn't slept in nearly two days, and crazy thoughts were ricocheting off my skull. Was I making the right decision? Was Cambridge the right place for me? Would I even be able to stay in one place for nine months? Well here we are, nine months later, and finally, I can answer those questions with certainty.

Yes, Cambridge was the right place for me. And now, I'm so sad to leave. In my three terms here, I managed to accomplish most of the goals I set out for myself. I made an incredible set of friends, I met some extraordinarily interesting people, I passed my degree, I made it to every college's formal hall, and I even scored tickets to four May Balls. But more than any of those things individually, I made this place my home, a notion that had been noticeably absent in my life for the year preceding my matriculation. Cambridge truly is a special place, with its academic gowns and eccentric traditions, its ancient buildings and illustrious alumni, its weeping willows and, of course, its wandering cows. I wouldn't have traded this experience for anything.

And now, here I am, on the eve of my graduation, my time coming to an end. So what's next for me? Well, to be frank, I'm not sure. In the immediate future, I'm going to spend the summer traveling, consulting with a few startups, and trying to figure things out. I'm not sure where life will take me next, but I am sure that I'm not one to accept anything short of something that I'm passionate about. So stay tuned. I promise you'll know (almost) as soon as I do.