According to the heliocentric model of Copernicus, the Sun was believed to be the center of the universe. If you were to ask my twenty-one-year-old soul as to why I am talking about a particular celestial body and mere astronomical theory, then you would come to know who I am today and who I would become tomorrow.

This is the perfect emblem of my personality—the sun. As ordinary as it may seem, the sun gives off light—the energy that each one of us deserves to see. The light that shines through the dark. The light that gives meaning to life.

As for me, in my early twenties, the sun has now become my ally. Perhaps, to some a mere symbol of hope, of new beginnings.

I could use a hundred thousand metaphors to describe what really is within me but I'd rather show the biggest portion of me which is strongly reflected in the Sun.

At some time in the past, I have grown very familiar with the bittersweet taste of reality in every path I take. Bearing the fear of diving right into the ocean so vast, finding the answers to all those unending questions—the hows, the whys, and the what-ifs.

Barely hanging onto a thread of nothingness, I began to ponder who I really am and what I really want to become.

What is my passion? What is my goal? What are my plans? What is my vision?

And what if I fail?

And right before me was the majestic sun rising above the horizon as if handing me all the answers I've long been waiting for. And so I thought to myself, I've finally found a new friend.

He teaches me everyday. He teaches me how to embrace the reality of today—to trust the process, to take the risk, to learn that failures do exist, and to never fear them.

He teaches me the very essence of sunrise and sunsets. Quoting from my favorite lyric, "the sun will rise and we will try again." I believe life is a constant cycle of change and while fighting battles for my dreams, I know the Sun will guide me all throughout.

When a glimmer of hope gets lost one day, I know a new day will help me create another hope—another opportunity to take.

Of who I am today and who I would become tomorrow, the Sun is asking me to tell you: I was born to rise. And while the sun keeps on rising, I must keep going.

-c.v.