Learning to Embrace Spontaneity

I love organization and planning as much as the next person (see my master syllabus, color coded calendar, and beyond), but have begun to take more chances and say yes to opportunities that pop up out of the blue. The active decision to say yes, within reason, to anything has been quite liberating. Saying yes to spontaneity means less thinking about what could be and more of embracing every possibility you have. So many of my best memories of college are last-minute adventures, whether they were late-night diner runs, going to an event on campus together, or just staying up until 3 A.M. laughing over a chick-flick and pints of ice cream.

With being more spontaneous comes a spirit of adventure. This winter break, I decided to book a plane ticket to California to spend a week reuniting with one of my close friends who spent the semester studying abroad. We went on so many crazy adventures together as we explored the San Francisco Bay Area, hiked, went into the city, celebrated her birthday and more. We planned some of what we were going to do, but life happened and weather happened and we rolled with the punches. It felt like taking a plunge to get on the plane and fly across the country, but the experience was one of the most memorable of my entire life.

You don’t have to be spontaneous in the same way as me, of course. How you punch through the monotony and routine is up to you. What’s important is that you do it, whether starting a beginner flamenco guitar course or quitting your job to set up a business. Spontaneity when it aligns with your desires is the spice of life.

I still will always love my organization, but choosing to be more spontaneous has allowed me to broaden my horizons. As I graduate from college this semester and enter my gap year before I apply to medical school, I hope to take advantage of my time in the real world to keep exploring. I encourage you to say “YES” as much as possible, because you have no idea where it will lead you. And that is a beautiful thing.