Hiiii,
I’m Maria.
I grew up in a town about twenty minutes away from Boston.
From the start of my college years, I had no idea what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. I chose psychology as a major because that is the subject in which I had the most credits. I took Spanish throughout high school and college. It became my minor. I also took some French and Italian classes as well because I was so fascinated with languages. I still am.
Fast forward to my senior year of college in 2016, where I STILL didn’t know what career path fits me. I went out on a whim and signed up for a month to study abroad in Costa Rica. I was indecisive at first but pushed myself to do it. I pushed myself because I knew it was what I really wanted. It was undeniably one of the greatest decisions that I had ever made. It was my first time traveling alone.
I signed up for a TEFL course in November 2018.
In January 2019 I started my practicum hours. I ended up completing way more hours than required because I enjoyed it so much. My passion for teaching was coming into view. While I was finishing up my practicum hours, I started chatting with people in Facebook groups about what their next step was going to be. I came across someone who said that they were tired of their life in America and they wanted a change. I related to this person because I didn’t want a 9-5 job (later I realized that I just didn’t want the 9-5 job in America). They told me that they were going to teach in Thailand. I was intrigued. At that time, I was looking into going to Peru or somewhere in South America because I wanted to improve my Spanish. Not all countries hire year-round so I looked into Thailand.
A month later, I went to visit family in Ireland for two weeks. A month after landing back in Boston, I was off to Thailand.
Thailand was without a doubt, another great decision that I made.
Since then, I have taught in South Korea and had yet another great experience, in a completely different way than my Thailand one. Now, I am looking for my next destination!
At 27, I still have no idea what I want to do for the rest of my life. But then I come to the realization that no one knows. It’s society that makes us question who we are. It’s society that makes me think I am living life the wrong way by not having a corporate job working 9-5. Sometimes I feel like I am breaking the rules and living life the “wrong” way. But sometimes, the rules have to be broken so you can find out who you are and what this life means to you.
People say that you’re going the wrong way when it is simply a way of your own.
-Angelia Jolie
Although I have started traveling later than I would have liked, traveling and seeing the world has been and will continue to be an experience and life that I could have never had if I did go by society’s rules. Breaking free has never felt so good.