Everything changed in an instant.  My preplanned future dissolved.  As I cobbled together the pieces, I learned a valuable lesson about myself.

I sat down on the couch next to my girlfriend, Mina.  Senior year had started with a whirlwind of classes, work, and job interviews.  She was watching TV and the blinds were drawn.  In the glow of the screen, I could see her thinking about something.  When I asked her what it was, I fell backward into the soft cushion of the couch.

She told me I was going to be a father.  As the TV flickered in front of me, I disappeared into my mind, the world going silent around me.  ‘What does this mean for us, me, the future I want?’  I thought.  The past three years, I studied finance at the University of Colorado.  Dreams of investment banking and trading stocks had danced in my head.  My senses came back and I heard Mina talking next to me.

“What now?” She said.