Last July I started on my undergrad degree. I've put it off for so many years. Now that I'm in full swing and in the "student" mindset, people are asking me what I'm majoring in. I always answer, "I'm not sure yet. I'm still undeclared." But I've known for quite sometime what my major would be. In fact, I've already declared it and will begin the course work in a few weeks.

I've considered a few different majors. When I first graduated from high school, I started out thinking I was going to be an English major. That desire quickly faded as soon as I attempted English 250. It wasn't the teacher that made the course off-putting. I think it was our reading selection. No, actually it wasn't that either because Dr. Peterson turned me on to The Color Purple by Alice Walker... not the movie... but the book that the movie is based on. I still have the copy of the book that I purchased for the class. My notes are still in the margins and I hold it dear to my heart.

[Image]It must be that special time in life when you're in between being a child and an adult. Every experience becomes discovery. The Color Purple (the book) engaged me like no other book had done prior, excluding The Island of the Blue Dolphins when I was in the fourth grade. The Color Purple led to the discovery of Langston Hughes and Toni Morrison, Maya Angelou and Zora Neale Hurston. I was absolutely head over heels in love with the Black experience. (Funny sidenote: one of my current Caucasian professors told me that it was not PC to use "Black" in referring to African-American's. I feel like it sounds more me to say "Black". I certainly don't want to offend anyone by using the term "Black". What do you think? Leave me a comment!) Anyway, enough with the nostalgic visit to semesters past. The demise of my infatuation with English, as a major, died when I miserably failed at a reaction paper I wrote about The Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe.

My next consideration was something in Fine Arts. Music, maybe Visual Arts. However after my first private piano lesson, I was intimidated by the amount of time I'd have to put into changing my terrible piano playing habits that had been handed down to me from my "round-the-way" piano teachers. The instructor, bless her heart, was a little lady with the thickest glasses. Mrs. Kekauoha was very patient with me but I eventually dropped out. Next, I took a 300 level drawing course and was quickly humbled by being surrounded by the most talented artists. What I should have done was start the visual arts classes at the beginner level but the pride and arrogance of youth got the best of me and I started where I "thought" was appropriate for my skill level. I suppose it's all a part of maturing; learning that there's always someone that is more talented, more intelligent, more creative, more everything... than me!

All previous attempts at college was foiled by my inability to decide on a path. I think that has plagued my life up until a year ago. My husband has truly inspired me. He finished his undergrad in 3 years and just graduated last June. Him, being able to accomplish that in such a short period of time really transformed the way I think about school. It has changed the way I envision my life and enables me to actively pursue things that I love. Get it right though, I still don't LOVE school but it is a means to an end.

I look at my entire adult life and have observed a behavioral pattern. I seemed to have put my whole entire life on hold to support others in their endeavors. My 30's will be all about me! Yikes, I'll be 35 in August... so the second half of my 30's will be all about me. What can I say? I'm a late bloomer! I am so amazed at how much creativity enters my mind. I've had so much time in the past 4 months to just BE and to allow my creativity to come forward. It has been suppressed for so long behind the rat race necessities like... work, work, work. Nothing stifles creativity, for me, like being chained to a job.

This brings me to the point of this post. I will be majoring in Philosophy. What can be done with a Philosophy major? Well, stay tuned as I touch on my favorite philosophers.

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Color Purple Photo Credit