I believe this is one of the hardest and most relevant question for people across all generations. Being a 21 year old college student, I can definitely say that this question is going to stump my peers and I for a while. To really know what I am passionate about takes a lot of introspection and self identification. Introspection comes in the form of examining my own mental and emotional processes. While self identification is who do I associate myself with. My group of friends, the clubs I am involved with, or the classes I am taking. Fortunately for me, I found out what I was passionate about at an earlier time than most. I was raised in a family that held a standard of being decisive. Being immigrants certainly was a factor that shape such family standards. When my parents and I came to the U.S with only $300 U.S Dollars, I witnessed the drive in my parents mindset to survive comfortably here. My parents wasted no time getting jobs in order to put food on the table and a roof over our heads. They committed to manual labor intensive jobs as nail technicians in Naples, Florida. The first few years of being in the U.S were the toughest times of our lives. One of the struggle was seeing my dad struggled with criticism from my grandparents back in Vietnam about how he is a male and has to do women's nails. I would hear and understand this conflict at 8 years old; I connected the dot of society's viewpoint versus desperation. My dad is a very decisive man. When he saw the situation that we were in, he knew he had to get a job quick even if it meant losing his dignity from his friends and my grandparents. To become a nail technician, he only had to attend cosmetic school for a few months, which then would allow him to earn money. It was from this connection that I realized how to be decisive and just do me. My dad taught me that the only person who's opinion truly matters is myself. Therefore, throughout my school time and social life, I chose to try a bunch of shit. In junior year, I went on a Outward Bound trip to Key West. It was from this experiment that I fell in love with boating/ sailing and being surrounded by the elements. Then I also joined Habitat for Humanity my senior year of high school and became passionate about humanitarian work. I caught the best feeling which was the feeling of helping others while building homes for people who are less fortunate than most. I hope you have caught the overall theme of my answer to the question of how do I know this is my passion. The theme is simple: be more decisive and just try shit. Don't let the judgment of others stop you from trying new stuff. If you never try then you won't know what your are passionate about. For me, I am passionate about fish, helping others, nature, and travel. Let me know what you are passionate about below!

Now that I am entering my junior year of college, I am finally seeing the issue with our education system. As a society, we push for high school graduates to pursue a higher level of education so that they can have a firm career and a good life. However, as I look around my campus at the University of Florida, all I hear and see is unhappiness. From my peers to acquaintances, everyone seems to be struggling with a mental disorder or failing to meet the standards of their family's expectations. Not gonna lie, I struggled with the same shit freshman year. My parents have always pushed the agenda for me to be the first doctor in the family; however, I never felt like that was my true calling. I went along with what they asked of me for two semesters when I was a health science major with a pre-med track. I always knew being a doctor was not the route for me, but my intuition was confirmed right after I went on a mobile clinic trip abroad with MEDLIFE. I ventured to Ecuador with UF MEDLIFE chapter to provide medicine, education, and development to low income families in different areas. It was this trip that made me really understand who I was supposed to be. As I was going through the different rotations during the mobile clinic period, I felt that I was not passionate about the medical aspect of things but more to the circumstances of those patients' lives. I started to connect the dots why poverty exists and how themes of hunger, sanitation, and education fall under that umbrella. It was on the last day of the trip of which I came to the realization that I wanted to make global changes rather than just live life helping each patient at a time.

Chasing snook on the fly The world of flyfishing used to be an enigma for me. I had no idea that people could target such big game fish like tarpon and sharks on the fly. It wasn't until I was in 9th grade when I was first introduced by a friend to watch a youtube video about fly fishing for tarpon. Seeing fisherman with their skiff creeping up on pods of tarpon and whipping the fly right in front of the tarpon was just magical. These fish were usually found in the mangroves or the flats of the Florida keys. The fishermen would tie on a minnow like fly and try to entice a tarpon to eat. When the tarpon does eat, the fly fisherman must be prepared to stick the hook by stripping the line back fast. Such action allows the sharp hook to puncture the hard bone like mouth of the tarpon. Setting the hook is only the first half of the battle, the fisherman needs to endure the long runs and quick jumps from the tarpon. The youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icTTYaYaWgg Ever since then, I have acquired a fly fishing rod from Bass Pro. I switch between fishing with the fly rod and spinning. My success with fly fishing has always been waking up early and walking the beach with my fly rod. Since I do not own a boat, I only have the luxury of fishing inshore. Naples, Florida is right on the Gulf of Mexico which means plenty of fish to choose from for fly fishing. The whole gulf is my backyard. Artist considers something art when it requires patience and creativity. In my opinion, fly fishing is art because it does require both elements. Patience comes in the form of continuously casting and waiting for the right presentation to work. Sometimes the fish can be extremely picky, so switching up the retrieving speed is crucial. For the creativity part, tying the fly with different color patterns and fishing at the right spot would need a lot of creativity. Tarpon and snook are keen predators that rely on sight. Throwing a fly that mimics a pilchard or mullet would be ideal when fishing for them on the beach.