I thought that I’d soon figure out what I wanted to do with my life as soon as I arrived in college.
In high school I did so many extra curricular activities like music and sports that I never had a chance to get focused on academics to the same degree.
By the time I was supposed to choose a major in college, I felt like a leaf in the wind—directionless and vulnerable to the force of gravity. I realized that I spent more time working out in the gym and partying with my friends than I did studying for tests or writing papers. I probably would have dropped out of college if I hadn’t taken this sculpting class during my sophomore year. I thought it would be boring because we’d just use clay, but the professor approached the medium in the opposite way. He taught us how to sculpt with every possible medium instead of clay. We started with simply cardboard and eventually graduated to steel rebar tie wire. That’s when we learned what changed my life forever—welding. I had a knack for welding and was soon hired by a building contractor right out of college to weld rebar wire ties together while laying rebar tie wire as the concrete pourers came in behind me. It’s a fast paced job that forces you to sweat in god awful heat, but it pays really well for a person in their mid 20s. I learned from others that welders are in high demand in a number of different industries, but I’ll stick with the construction business for now. I’m already used to welding rebar tie wire in 100 degree heat.