My friend, myself, and the precipice of change

You don't always know the moment when your life is going to change forever. Sometimes you step into it, look up, and realize the place you're at now could have gone a vastly different direction if you had moved slightly just a year or two back. But, sometimes you get to lean directly over the edge. You see what will happen before you take a plunge, for better or worse. 2011-2013My years in graduate school were another high point in my life. I was living with my grandmother in Bryan, and didn't pay rent. I made her meals, kept her company, took her on drives. I had disposable income from my stipend for being a graduate assistant. As a graduate assistant, I had to be available tohelping professor 20 hours a week. I delivered tests, got to help with research, and even got to cowrite and present a paper. I did my first ever lecture over Third Parties for my mentor's Introduction to Political Science class. I wore crisp shirts, ties, vests. I got an office with the other TAs, and I offered…