Jen Schwartz

I'm not a person who does well with change. I sleep with my teddy bear from childhood and my driver's license picture is from the day I turned 16. I like stability, predictability and routine. For the past 6 years I have lived in a city 20 miles from my hometown, with tons of friends I've known for over a decade, doing a job I've gotten quite good at. I'm about to take a large leap and quit my job, move to a new city where I don't know anyone, and get a degree in an area that is completely foreign to anything I've ever done or studied before. When considering this choice, a large part of me wanted to stay nicely cocooned in the warm comfort zone I currently reside in. But when I think of Lindsay and all of the adventures in life she so vehemently threw herself into and dreamt of pursuing in the future, I know she's telling me to dive in. It's not that Lindsay was fearless. That's what makes her even more persuasive. It's that she made tough choices in spite of her fears. It's also not just that she would have done something like this herself and succeeded - of course she would have, she was ridiculously intelligent, charismatic and gorgeous. Instead, what inspires me most is that I know she would believe in me succeeding at this challenge. When I see myself through Lindsay's eyes - the eyes which never for a moment doubted that all of her friends and family members could move any mountain they so chose - that is when I truly believe in myself. And on an equally serious note, I'm doing my best to embrace this 80's neon accessories trend because I think she would be on board.