So far I have enjoyed reading stories of how everyone had become interested in becoming a speech therapist. My desire to become a speech therapist came later in my life than I wish it had. I graduated high school and followed the typical Watkins tradition of attending WVU and hated it. Joining a sorority at my grandmother, aunt and moms request only added to my unhappiness. The school was too large and I couldn't figure out a major. It was overwhelming. Finally, I got the courage to tell my mom that I was leaving WVU and planning on attending art school in Pittsburgh. I thought I like art, I can draw, that's for me. I just know it. Unfortuantely she was too sick with breast cancer at the time to argue and I went ahead and did it. She is a breast cancer survivor and my biggest inspiration in life. She tells me now if she could have had better sense at that time she would have made me rethink that move. Art school was easy and fun that's all I can say. I earned my associate degree and set out into the advertising world. All I found out after a couple of years of freelance work was that I like art as a hobby. I moved around and lived in Charlotte NC, Hilton Head SC, and Phoenix where I worked in a advertising/travel agency. I ended up becoming a travel agent. Boy that art degree was really paying off now. As a travel agent I did get to travel to places I never could have afforded without that job. I see that as a great life experience. But eventually, I needed to take life a little more serious. I moved back to Charleston and started taking classes at WV State. In art school you don't take english, math, etc. So it was really difficult for me to get back into the swing of things. I come from a family of women who are caretakers. They are all nurses or social workers or therapists. I was getting to know myself better and I knew my true calling was to do something where I could help someone change the quality of their life. My family knew this and so did my friends. I started taking classes towards physical therapy and I did volunteer work at the therapy clinic at Charlestons General Hospital. Than I had a friend mention to me about speech therapy. I didn't know too much about it but I was interested because at the same moment my father was losing his ability to communicate. He was too stubborn to get therapy and did suffer the consequences of that. I truely believe life would have been different for him if he would have seeked some help like therapy. Anyways, I met with Mrs. McComas and she was very helpful. I have learned so much in this program. It has made me not only know that I have truely found an occupation I will be happy with but also that there are going to be so many directions in this field I can seek. I finally feel good about myself.