Hello everyone. JC here.

For those of you who don't know, today is my birthday. Sorry for writing a journal so late in the day where I'm at. It's just that, even though it's my B-day, I still have to attend school and make the most of my day studying. I'm trying to finish an 8-week course that I'm taking at the moment, which ends this Sunday night, and I want to finish it strong - so I'm pulling out all the stops to get an A in that class.

Still, it's a bit of serendipity to finally turn 29 years old. This is my final year in my 20s, and honestly, it's been one helluva decade of trials, pain, and ordeals. I remember, around 10 years ago, a fresh-faced JC was just barely studying his first year in my old University, and he was failing miserably. Now, I'm studying hard and strong, in ways I never felt I could achieve. Honestly, I'm happy to be where I am now, and I hope to keep going forward in my life as I make the most of what I have accomplished.

Honestly, seven years ago, when I was starting off with the worst of my illness, I didn't expect to be back to where I am now, and not only surviving but also thriving. I am not just eking out a living anymore. I am pursuing goals and dreams that I thought were gone, and now I can dedicate myself to a life that I hoped to achieve for myself.

Still, I have a long way to go before I can achieve my success. I still have another year or so of Community College to take before I can return to my old University, and I hope to at least have the 2nd draft of my novel finished and published by then.

Many people in my classes have said that I'm a good teacher whenever I do presentations, and even my own professor has suggested to me that I should become an English Professor. I don't know if I want to be drowned in grading homework assignments, but I certainly am interested in teaching a new generation of writers the ins and outs of writing stories. If I ever pursue a doctorate degree in English - which I am seriously considering doing - if I ever reach that level, then I would very much like to be a professor at a good college or university.

That being said, I can't count my chickens before they hatch. I have a long way to go, and a long road ahead.

For now, I'm just content to be where I am, and making the steady progress which I am doing. For the first time in a long while, I have hope again. I have my hopes and dreams reigniting my passion for learning and writing again, and I hope to keep pushing that passion to newer and greater heights.

I've come this far. And age is just a number, after all. I have a whole life of literary works to get done before I say that I have achieved my dream of being a successful, professional writer.

And it is something that I very much look forward to.

Sincerely,
J.C. Solis