I remember when I was just starting out in science as a fledgling PhD student, I used to sit and worry about running out of research questions. It was inconceivable to me that I would have enough words to say or things to explore past my PhD, so focused was I on my singular task. How can it be possible to sustain an entire career, I wondered? Is there a point in every scientist’s life where they simply have exhausted their lists of possible projects? Naively I thought there must be.
I felt similarly when I started this blog. Wondered if the initial excitement would wear off and I would simply run out of things to say (yes, even I am speechless on occasion). Now, you guys know these cyber pages are mostly graced with my endless ramblings, but I didn’t know if, like any commodity, one day the words and thoughts would dry up. Over the years, friends and family members have asked how long I think I’ll keep up with the blog. And my stock answer has always been, “As long as it’s fun.” I suppose the real truth is, I’ll keep writing as long as I have words to say. And as long as there are amazing Horrockses dresses like this one from Advantage in Vintage…
By words we learn thoughts,
and by thoughts we learn life.
Jean Baptiste Girard
Now that I’m an official Grown Up, with a lab and a seemingly endless list of projects I want to be able to accomplish, I’ve thought a lot about that girl I was. I take the time to visit her now and again – on her adventures in New Zealand, terrified, but putting on a brave face. Working so hard to please everyone. Stumbling through her 20’s, trying to figure out who she is separate from anyone else’s expectations.
And then I come back to present-day me. I click away on my keyboard in my office, run my hands along the workbench in my own lab, sit in on meetings, advise my students. I feel so grateful for that girl who knew nothing, but went for it anyway. I wouldn’t be where I am without her. I wouldn’t be who I am without her.
And being where I am now, it’s hard to imagine a time when I believed I wouldn’t have things to say. I can’t say when the shift happened, but I no longer worry about running out of words. I only worry about running out of time.
And perhaps that’s the truest reality. We will never be done with the things that we love.
xoxo
Outfit Details:
Dress: Advantage in Vintage (similar modern & vintage here, here & here)
Belt: made by me from a vintage buckle (similar)
Necklace: gift, Magnolia (similar)
Handbag: vintage (similar here & here)
Shoes: Miss L Fire (similar here & here)
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Any items in a post marked with a “c/o” (courtesy of) a retailer mean I was provided with an item for free in exchange for a review on my blog. I always provide my honest opinion of any item I’m reviewing, regardless of whether it was sent to me as a courtesy item or if I purchased it myself. In addition, this post may contain affiliate links. This means that if you click and/or make a purchase through certain links or ads on this site, I may make a commission from that click and/or purchase at no cost to you, which helps with the day-to-day running costs of my blog.