ABSTRACT
The goal of this reflection is threefold. Firstly, it aims to provide insight into an individual experiencing his final years as a student during COVID-19 and transitioning to professional life. This transition is an imperative inflexion point where two worlds seem to come together but where doubt can exist within the human consciousness (What job? What impact do I want to have? What will bring financial security?). As such, this chapter intimately guides readers through the academic and professional endeavors I undertook during that period (January 1, 2020, to August 1, 2022). Secondly, it aims to provide meditation around the question of what it entails to act and critically remain informed as a global citizen when in-person relations and observations are no longer seamlessly available. This chapter concludes with several key lessons I learned from the COVID-19 experience buttressed by a plea for both the intellectual and spiritual pursuit of self-actualization during times of uncertainty and societal fragmentation.
