Just this week I embarked on a road trip to New Orleans with pretty much a group of strangers. As part of my class this semester, my classmates and I traveled down to New Orleans to volunteer in the Lower Ninth Ward and explore the city. If everything was to go as planned, the car ride would have taken 27 hours, but of course that was not the case. You could say we encountered every possible traffic disruption, from rush hour to accidents -- we hit it all. My classmates were split between four different vans and we were to meet up when we arrived in New Orleans. I was nervous to begin not only for the duration of the car ride, but because I had not spent a lot of time with these people besides an hour class period, two days a week.

We started off with the usual awkward politeness that a group of strangers have. After about five hours, it was evident that there was no way we weren't making some type of connection. Between switching driving shifts and selecting the music to jam to, we began to come closer to one another. You don't quite realize how long 29 hours is until you are sitting in a car for all of it. As more bathroom breaks were made and snacks were exchanged, these people were no longer strangers to me. I knew almost all of these people's life stories and favorite things. As we arrived in the city, 29 hours later, I had made four new friends. I'm glad to have been able to spend this time with my classmates and to improve our relationships. What got me nervous was that each separate car had the opportunity to become close with one another. Would everyone be too close with their new friend group in their car? Would they be open to being friends with everyone else? The dynamic was a bit off at the beginning of the trip as everyone was still adjusting from expanding outside their new found friendships from the car ride. However, after the first few days passed, that was not a problem. From playing volleyball in our free time, to volunteering, to roaming around the French Quarter, becoming friends was not an issue. Who knew that a mandatory class would give me more than just fellow classmates?

At the beginning of the school year making friends was one of my biggest concerns. Many people had come into college with friends from their hometown and I was one in a few that did not. I was afraid that I would not be able to find people similar to myself and I would only have my friends from home. Going into second semester I had a few best friends, but not the big group I had desired -- that is until now. I feel so blessed to have met these people and it was because of my 29 hour road trip that we became closer than just a couple of classmates. I can honestly say that after this week long adventure in New Orleans with my class I have made friends that I hope stay in my life for a long time. It is a rare occasion when you can look at someone and say that you want them in your life for a long time. I can look at most of this group and say that there is nothing that makes me happier. I came into this trip expecting to get joy out of helping families in the Lower Ninth Ward and exploring the city, but I ended up with so much more.