First off, HOLY THREE DAYS LEFT!! It seems so insane that after 73 days together (including those hours on the train!), in 3 days, we'll go our seperate ways. Some people are roadtripping, some flying. Some going back to school, some entering the workforce, some going back to their home countries (we love you, Jun and Young!). In my case, my mom and I will be doing some extra traveling, going to see LA, where I was born, then the grand canyon, with some friends and family visit in between!Part of my goal for this summer was to try to decide what I want to do with the rest of my life. Some days, I kind of just want to tour on my bike forever. No feeling beats the joy of biking over the crest of a mountain, and looking back at everything you just climbed. In reality though, I've been trying for a very long time to decide what I want to do as a career. Do I want to research neuroscience, and spend my days playing with brains? Do I want to go to Med school, and get to play doctor everyday? Do I want to fight cancer in some unique, unknown way?For some reason, I've never considered nursing. Don't get me wrong, I've always found it to be a perfectly noble profession. I think nurses are super, super useful, and are generally full of love and other beautiful things, but for some reason, they've never fallen into my list of possible things to do with my life. Two major things have changed that for me.First, living with Kristen has been absolutely awesome. I love watching her do her nurse stuff whenever there's cuts or scrapes or sniffles. She's been an absolute angel, answering all my questions along the way about what nursing school was like and what she expects her job to be like and why she went into nursing. (She also provides all those answers for Casey. We're a curious lot. Thanks Kristen!!!) She's done a ton to help me understand what I should be expecting, as well as trying to help walk me through what I love about neuro and what I would love about nursing and basically helping me in every way she can.Secondly, I've been blessed enough to sit in on most of the portraits (best static chore everrrrr).very single time, I learn. I learn something new, about cancer, about myself, about life. Lately, I've been lucky enough to learn about something that's always been a huge part of my life-caretaking. I've spent most of my life taking care of sick animals and sick people and doing general care-taking-ish things. Sometimes, all I think I have left to learn is actual medical procedures (teenager syndrome taking over). But thanks to the portraits, I've learned more than I ever couldve imagined. Care taking is so much more than giving medicine and taking vitals. It means talking to them and holding their hand when they're scared. Being there when no one else is. Giving them someone to laugh to or scream at or cry with. I owe enormous thanks to every portrait who has helped me realize how much it really means to be a caregiver, and for opening my eyes to why I should be a nurse.I guess what I really should say is: Mom, Dad... I'm going into nursing!