Thus far during my internship, I have found myself pondering about what’s to come. I arrived around three weeks ago, and feel like I am finally getting settled. I’ve never been west of Houston, Texas, so being out here in Nevada has been a total shock to my system. It’s a good shock though, because I always look forward to new experiences and opportunities.

As for the internship itself, I have realized that arriving during the winter for a botany internship is a little lackluster. I have learned some new plants but all of them are just dead, dried versions of what they were just a few months ago. I know that they will be drastically different soon, so that keeps me hopeful, because the best way I learn a new ecosystem and flora is by walking around a landscape and conversing about the plants at hand. This has happened little, but I am looking forward to the spring and summer, where I can see the local flora with all that it has to offer. I am focusing my current days and the next month or so on training, and handling tasks that can be completed during this time of year, such as fire rehabilitation monitoring, making willow tree cuttings for future plantings, and becoming familiar with my new surroundings.