It's been a while since I've updated this website. A lot has happened in the meantime, and I figured it was about time I sat down and wrote about it. The past few months have been some of the most exciting, terrifying, and transformative of my life. I've gotten married, survived a pretty serious car accident, welcomed a new puppy into our home, and started the next chapter of my journey toward becoming a school counselor.

So, you know, nothing too crazy.

A Close Call

On July 23, I was involved in a pretty serious car accident. While passing a truck at night, I struck a guardrail at approximately 70 miles per hour. I ended up fracturing four vertebrae in my neck and upper back (C7, T1, T2, and T3) and had to undergo surgery.

It was terrifying. One moment, everything was normal, and the next, I was in a hospital trying to wrap my head around what had just happened. I spent the following weeks recovering, wearing a neck brace, and being unable to work.

An experience like that has a way of putting things into perspective. It's strange how quickly life can change, and even stranger to realize how easily things could have gone differently.

I'm incredibly grateful for the medical professionals who took care of me, as well as my friends and family who supported me throughout my recovery. I'm still working toward getting back to normal, but I'm thankful to be here.

And, as if the universe hadn't already decided to make this summer eventful enough...

I Got Married!

On August 8, 2026, I got married.

After more than four years together, countless memories, adventures, and a fair share of challenges, we finally got to celebrate our love surrounded by the people who mean the most to us.

We held our wedding in my Grammy's backyard. It was a celebration of our relationship and everything that brought us to this point. Family traveled from across the country and even from Vietnam to be there.

Given that I had been in a pretty serious accident just over two weeks earlier, the fact that I was even able to have our wedding as planned felt like a small miracle.

Looking back, I don't think I could have imagined a more meaningful day. There was something particularly special about standing beside Ngân, surrounded by the people we love, after everything that had happened.

Life has a funny way of reminding you what's important.

I'm beyond excited to continue building a life with my wife. Even writing the word wife still feels a little surreal.

Meet Cookie!

Our household has also gotten a little more chaotic.

Toward the end of August, Ngân and I welcomed a Shiba Inu puppy named Cookie into our family!

She's adorable, stubborn, energetic, and apparently under the impression that everything in our apartment is edible.

Our cat, Tiger, is still adjusting to the arrival of his new roommate. Cookie, meanwhile, seems to think that Tiger is the most interesting creature on the planet. We're working on establishing some boundaries between the two of them.

Raising a puppy has certainly been an experience. Between potty training, crate training, teething, and trying to convince her that the couch isn't a chew toy, it's been a lot of work. But she's brought an incredible amount of joy into our lives.

I never thought I'd spend so much time celebrating another living creature for successfully pooping outside, but here we are.

Back to School (Again)

On top of everything else, I've started another internship as part of my master's program in school counseling at St. Bonaventure University.

This is an exciting step toward my goal of becoming a school counselor. After spending time in elementary education, I'm continuing to expand my experience working with students and learning what it means to be an effective counselor.

The beginning of the school year has already provided opportunities to learn more about the profession, from administrative responsibilities and collaborating with school staff to developing counseling interventions and exploring ways to support students.

I'm particularly interested in helping students navigate the challenges that come with adolescence, including mental health, academic pressure, relationships, and the increasingly complicated role of social media.

It's also been interesting navigating the transition from learning about counseling in a classroom to applying those skills in an actual school. There's a difference between understanding an intervention in theory and figuring out how to use it effectively with a student sitting across from you.

I still have plenty to learn, but I'm looking forward to growing more confident in my abilities as I continue through the program.

Looking Ahead

It's difficult to summarize everything that's happened over the past few months without feeling like I've lived several different lives.

In the span of a few weeks, I went from lying in a hospital bed to standing at the altar, adopting a puppy, and returning to school for my internship.

I'm still recovering. I'm still learning how to be a good husband, a good dog owner, and eventually, a good school counselor. I'm still figuring out what comes next.

But maybe that's the point. Life doesn't necessarily wait for you to finish one chapter before throwing you into another. Sometimes, everything happens at once, and you just have to figure out how to keep moving forward.

If there's one thing this summer has taught me, it's that the life you're building and the life you're actually living aren't always the same thing. Plans change. Things go wrong. Sometimes, things go spectacularly right.

And sometimes, all of that happens within the same month.

For now, I'm grateful to be alive, grateful to be married to my favorite person, and grateful for the little family we're building together.

Here's to whatever comes next.

Hopefully, a slightly less eventful autumn.