Sometimes our failures guide us. I thought I might want to study mathematics for life. I pushed myself hard and was taking advanced courses. When I received my first bad grade, I realized it was not the right path for me, and that my motivations for delving that far into mathematics were wrong. I'm glad I learned that earlier rather than later.

I've stayed in research, and all those math courses have given me a firm foundation on which to solve real science problems--I see that now. But I cannot regret going through what was fundamentally a learning process, and stepping too far in the wrong direction.