When I look back to the beginning of 2017, I can clearly remember a girl who was hopeful, excited, but incredibly unsure of what the year held. I was going into my final year of eligibility for a job I had dreamed of holding since the moment I discovered the MAOTeen program existed (around age 11).
So clearly, 2017 was going to be a big year of change for me, either accomplishing my dream or moving onward to something else. I wanted to jump fearlessly into last year, knowing everything I had done had led me there, but I still worried there was more to do. I was trying to discover exactly how my year would unfold, what exactly I would do to prepare and who I would need help from. Most importantly, I began thinking I knew the way before I had even begun, losing trust in the process, and trying to calculate every moment...
Looking back....
Looking back one year later I as I enter the second half of my reign as Miss Oregon’s Outstanding Teen, the road was a bit different then I had imagined. But different doesn’t equal worse, and although I didn’t know it yet, the courage it took for me to leap into another year was going to pay off in the best way possible. With all that said, it takes a lot of faith to trust that everything will happen how it is supposed to. I may of been incredibly scared one year ago, but the hope of my dream remained. I remembered the 11 year old girl who didn’t think she would ever be good enough. I remembered her ambition, her hope, and her dream, which was also very much still my dream.
The past 6 months...
The past 6 months have been filled with incredible moments that define exactly why I wanted this job so much. I had the opportunity to represent my state on the MAOTeen stage, meeting girls from across the country and making best friends for life (which needs an entire blog in itself). Then embarking on my own personal adventures upon returning home, working with organizations to promote animal adoption and welfare. Numerous appearances with Harley where we got to share the sisterhood of Miss Oregon with people throughout the state. One of my favorites being the tour of PDX airport we took, which was my first appearance after nationals. Working with the Every Child Organization to see firsthand the need for foster parents in Oregon, and meeting kids during their holiday party.
I have been lucky enough to meet so many young girls who look up to me. Girls who are just like I once was- newly discovering the MAOTeen program; filled with wonder, excitement and hope. And having the ability to reassure them they too are capable of accomplishing their goals reminds me of what it means to be a titleholder, and more specifically a role model. Telling someone it can be done is one thing, but showing them is another, and is exactly what I wanted to do.
““Trust the wait. Embrace the uncertainty. Enjoy the beauty of becoming. When nothing is certain, anything is possible.” ”
