I began 2011 as a photojournalist, working vibrantly diverse assignments in Los Angeles. However, the stability and quantity had diminished in recent years. On my 31st birthday, I came across a job opportunity that struck a nostalgic chord in me – teaching abroad.

Originally I had planned my graduate thesis to dovetail with teaching in the Peace Corps. It later morphed into something else entirely, but the desire to combine travel and work remained a dream.

This new option delivered that dream, accompanied by decent pay, short hours and great benefits. I’ll be afforded the chance to live and work in South Korea while continuing to shoot stock images and experience a new culture. The cost of this dream? Having to leave behind friends, family and the familiar.

While the last four months of grueling paperwork, certification and authentications weren’t idyllic, the promise of a storied, self-steered adventure is mouth-watering motivation enough to occupy any reservations.

I am a child of cinema.

Every flash memory and nostalgic pulse of childhood can be paired with a great scene from a favorite film. I grew up infatuated with storytelling and later, it silently insinuated itself into my choice of careers. Understanding the structure of story is an intangible and slippery addiction that demands practice and delivers more questions than answers.

The choice to begin anew in South Korea is an empowering one. There is a phantom feeling of a great ship’s weathered wheel in my hands as I close in on my departure date.

I am regaining authorship of my story.

The structure of my future feels heightened and grand. The epics I grew up with are seemingly at eye level now, instead of having to crane my imagination upwards to take them in.