Once our head hits the pillow at night, we are ending the day, and when we wake up in the morning it is starting a new one. As we sit on the edge of our beds, we wonder what the day is going to consist of, what is going to come next.

I am currently in the confusion of what comes next for me on my path called life. Between all sorts of clubs, jobs, friends and college classes I still don’t know what I am supposed to do next.

I have a hard time living in the present and tend to mainly look towards the future for guidance. I see my end goal that I want and I try to figure out what I need to do to make it there. That is what I make most of my decisions on, the future plans.

Next spring, I finally will graduate with my AA degree in English and then I hope to transfer to obtain my BA. Anyone else who is in college currently or who graduated in the past understands that in order to transfer or even apply for a four-year university you have to apply a year ahead. That is making it hard for me right now because I don’t know where I want to go.

I did, I had the plan to transfer to Stan State and do online while I stuck with my job here but I recently had a phone call with a school in San Francisco called the Academy of Art University. They talked to me about transferring there to continue on my path of photo journalism.

If I chose that path, then I would have to move there next fall and start new in my life and in my job path.

There are so many things to think of and so many pros and cons to go over.

I am adding more and more on my plate which I was balancing pretty well until this past week where it all caught up to me and I am beginning to feel it all tumble and fall.

I am struggling to calm down and try not to stress myself out but gosh, I am only 21 years old and I don’t even know how I handled it up until now.

I keep wondering what I am doing with my life and I go back to the question of what comes next?

I wish there was a fancy rule book with tips and tricks on how to take on life, especially for young adults between the ages of 20 and 26.

I am not giving up, though; I am going to continue to set up my future and hope for the best.

The only thing that I can do is walk forward blind and hope that I come out successful.

But what comes next?

I think that statement is constantly floating around my head like a ghost until I figure it out, but I don’t think anyone ever totally figures it out so looks like it’ll be with me ‘til the end of days.

I have such a curiosity if other people my age are feeling the same way that I am.

I wish that more people within that age group reached out to others so they wouldn’t go down the road of life alone. Then we could help each other figure it out and maybe make it less stressful.

I think that every human should take a moment to really reflect on what comes next. Many people get up, go to work, take care of their family, go to school, go to bed, wake up and do it all over again. The world is already in a constant rotation, so why should we be as well?

I hope that everyone reading this will stop and take a moment to reflect on what they have accomplished so far and then take a moment to ask, what comes next?

Sarah Lawson is a staff reporter for The Oakdale Leader, The Escalon Times and The Riverbank News; she can be reached at slawson@oakdaleleader.com.