more than ever, after attending cfs, i have a renewed sense of passion for using the camera to shed light on injustice. for me, this revelation couldn’t have come at a more necessary time.

while i have clung onto my dream of being a journalist, amid the rigor of college, my passion for storytelling has, admittedly, taken a backseat. when people would ask me about my plans post-grad, i would hesitantly reply, “possibly, journalism… but maybe finance, or marketing, or business. i’m not sure yet.”

however, at cfs, i was reminded that journalists serve a worthy and righteous cause as the recordkeepers of history. as attacks on the free press are made around the globe, persisting to tell the truth is a responsibility that is worth the risk; even if it means stepping on the toes of corrupt bureaucracies and being considered a nuisance.

furthermore, given the complexities of environmental issues, i realized it is not enough to be able to regurgitate facts and statistics. while i have committed myself to the mastery of the production elements of journalism, as delegates from the sahara to the pacific spoke, i recognized that developing intellectual insight was an equally, if not more, important element to telling informative, powerful stories. 

as the plane lifted off of the ground from san francisco, i felt a shedding of my old self. i knew that i was in for a dramatic internal transformation, but i did not know in what ways they would come. however, as i strapped into my seat and left the city of seven hills, rome, i realized that i didn’t necessarily become a new person but rather i shed the fear, self-doubt, and uncertainty that were quieting my inner self.

i returned back to the 6th grader in me that beamed when she saw her classmates excitedly watch her documentary. i reunited with the 16-year-old version of myself that spent nights studying amanpour, winfrey, and lisa ling. most importantly, i made the declarative decision that my aspirations of being a professional journalist wasn’t going to be a mere “possibility,” but my reality.

my name is marisa umeh, i’m a planet 世界杯欧洲预选赛免费直播 , and i am going to be a professional journalist.