Woe noun \’wō\—used to express grief, regret, or distress.

I am now entering into the end of my third week of my senior year. It hit me over the summer that this is the year I must figure out what I am doing after I graduate.

What are your plans after graduation?

I now regret asking that same question to all of my friends when they were seniors. I have many ideas, but no exact answer. I mean I could do an internship, travel the world…be broke and travel the world, work as a teacher, be hired as a researcher, be a fashion designer, do a talk show, live with my momma, have my mom kick me out the house, or go to graduate school. Graduate school is the best fit, but in the midst of this busy semester I have time for nothing else but class.

I am taking six classes this semester ranging from the trial of Joan of Arc to Intro to Art. Five of the classes are in history and my mind is spinning. History. History. History. History. History. Art. History. History. History. History. History. Art. On top of that I have this leadership role in SGA which is an amazing opportunity and also an amazing time consuming role. I am tired…I am beyond tired I am exhausted. It is not impossible; however, it is going to be extremely difficult to try to balance these classes, research, leadership position, and attempt to apply for graduate school. I just hope as I apply to these schools and prepare for the GRE that all these efforts pay off at the end. Honestly, I will not be able to deal with rejection from colleges. You put all your time, MONEY not only application fees, but all the funds you put into getting an undergraduate degree, and emotion to invest in a future that may crash if a school says no. It is the reality, yet I want to have my way…yup I said it. Who doesn’t want to study at an Ivy League or other prestigious universities. I want a future as a historical researcher, but why does it has to be based on whether or not I obtain a master’s degree or even a PhD.

Don’t get me wrong, I am fully aware that I can be a researcher with a bachelor’s degree, yet it is much harder to acquire and retain a job with that qualification alone. I enjoy researching. I enjoy black history. I enjoy genealogy. I am always doing research. I LOVE doing research. I can read for days, I can research for weeks, and never become bored with it. At the end of the day, this is what I want. This project alone has led to various research opportunities including presentations, archival research, digital history, and this blog.

Speaking of my research, I am still figuring out how to go about this final project. I have the research. It is just trying to figure out how this digital project will look. My vision is a introduction video and a website. It will be a flash video giving a brief overview of the family addressing their history—accomplishments, struggles, and stories. Then after the video you enter this website that presents a family tree. This tree will include all the members of the family. When you click on an individual’s name, you are given a biography and information on whatever history pertains to that person. Does that make sense? Perhaps I can say it better. Say for instance you click on the name of Harry Florence Flowers. You are given a biography and more information regarding the 21st United States Colored Infantry, slavery in Florida, daily life in Florida in the early 1900s, and the Great Migration. Other topics I am exploring that pertain to blacks in history include:

• Sports (Golf and Archery)
• Black Middle Class
• Social Clubs
• Opera
• Sororities
• SNCC, including grassroots organizations
• Life in Philadelphia
• WWI, WWII, National Guard
• Religion (Catholicism, AME Zion, Episcopalian, Lutheran)
• HBCU
• History of my college

There are others, I just need to finalize the list.

Other than that I am breathing, healthy, and surrounded by friends who tell me to go to sleep and cook meals for me when I am too busy. Thank you God for them.

This will be my life and all I have to say is woe to being a senior history major.

Until the next post.

Christina