Coming back from spending a semester abroad, I have never been more ready to embrace and tackle life on campus. Having had the unique ability to travel the world within such a short span of time, my comfort zone was tested, twisted, and pulled on every single day I was abroad.
Although last year gave me the most significant chance to step outside of this comfort zone, I am using the new year to recognize the growth these experiences gave me. Now, the time has come: the time to return to my comfort zone on campus. Instead of living in the bubble that it is easy to lose myself in, the growth that I experienced as I traveled the world is something that I hope to transfer to my life on campus. Taking what I learned abroad, this new year is about transferring the confidence, worldliness, and sense of diversity that last semester granted me to ordinary student life.
Instead of ordering a cappuccino at the nearby cafe near Piazza del Duomo in the heart of Florence, I will be quickly grabbing a cup of Starbucks at the library. Instead of recognizing the same shop owners opening their stores as I walk to class in the early morning, I will observe the same students walking to the various academic buildings on campus. Although the pace and style of my life as a student is about to change, I am ready to incorporate my brief but significant life as a Florentine to a new semester in America. As the new year approaches, a new style of appreciation, comfort, and lifestyle is on the horizon.