Along with the milk in the refrigerator, you should never worry about when life will turn bad or spoil. No doubt, it eventually will. However, there are ingredients you can add, perspectives you can take, and plans you can implement in order to transform it into…voila: yogurt…or cheese if you are in the mood. I made a healthier upgrade from the lemonade metaphor. It still conveys the point but with a greater nutritional value.

You will encounter many worst-case scenarios during graduate school and throughout life. There are some you can anticipate and prevent. Then there are others that happen unexpectedly and unavoidably. They will all have their day so you should not feel afraid, anxious, or angry. You possess skills and strengths. You will apply and develop them; even acquire new ones. You will adapt and adjust. Regain your balance and continue your path, maybe in a new direction or at a slower pace toward the moon instead of the sun. You will still shine brilliantly regardless of the scenario, even if you stumble on the way up to the stage. Of course, we promise not to laugh but to applaud resoundingly.

There are many answers and avenues that will lead you to the right state, the right fit. Each scenario, from the worst to the best, has opportunities imbedded in it. They contain opportunities for you to learn, to grow, to challenge, and to change. In the process, you may discover an unrealized, untapped power inside, maybe even of the Jedi lightsaber variety. Nonetheless, always, always know that people surround you, who, like Cyndi Lauper, will catch you when you fall and redirect you when you get lost. Do not hold back or hesitate. We are waiting…time after time.

…together in the struggle…

...until next write...