LET ME TAKE YOU ON AN AWKWARD JOURNEY - FROM SMALL TOWN TO MARS (AND BEYOND)

My journey doesn't start anywhere terribly interesting, just a small town in New England. I was a good student and knew I would probably end up in a science-related career, but I did not ever imagine the directions this would take me. In high school, I developed a passion for the planet Mars and an interest in physics, which led to an undergraduate program in physics (with a minor in astronomy, and one course short of a music minor). An undergraduate research project analyzing earth-based spectra of asteroids was my gateway to geology: it was exciting to look at samples of the minerals we'd been identifying in those data and think about what the surfaces of those asteroids would look like.

The journey part begins with grad school: the only program where I was accepted was across the country in Arizona. It was a shock to move to a place that was so dry and flat, but there were so many opportunities for field trips to explore geology and see landscapes that were very different from home (and much more Martian!). A similar story as I ended up moving back east to Pittsburgh for another degree (the only program where I was accepted), and then on to Tennessee, where as a postdoc I could finally focus on the Martian landscapes that had drawn me to geology in the first place.

This journey would seem fairly straightforward (at least on paper) until after I accepted a tenure-track position back in New England. Shortly after finishing my third year of classes and realizing that I had achieved the position for which I'd traveled and spent so much time in school, I looked to strive for more of that "work-life balance" and focused more on my favorite hobby, horseback riding. This is where the journey goes sideways, as I had an unfortunate fall and became a paraplegic due to a spinal cord injury.

Often, though, when things go sideways is when we can be our most creative. Through that misfortune, I was able to find the importance in my identity as planetary scientist, and to rethink how I approach my science and my teaching so it is more accessible - so I can help others with similar passions explore those interests while sharing my own.

That, I suppose, would be the hardest part of our journeys - deciding what of our identities is important, and how we can best emphasize the things that we feel are most important about ourselves.