For me, this week was extremely developmental. As I struggled to make new friends and adjust to an extremely new setting I learned a lot about myself. I came from Los Angeles knowing no one and was forced to mingle and go outside of my comfort zone in various situations, but my biggest “aha” moment actually stemmed from this class. In one of the first days I reflected on my heritage and pride. It was here I realized I was lacking confidence, not just in expressing my heritage, but in every aspect of my life. From then on I tried to be more open with people and confident in myself. That day I met at least five new people. As soon as I opened myself up to rejection and all of my social fears, they didn’t seem scary and I was able to connect and make deeper friendships. Reflecting on my time here, as well as my life as a whole, has helped me build perspective and better cope with my emotions while being away from home. This week there were three big earthquakes in Los Angeles that affected my friends and family. This made me very upset for a couple days and while my friends comforted me and my family assured me of their safety, I was very anxious. This week was a bit of a rollercoaster for me, but I worked through it and am really happy with where I am now.