Assignment 3 - Gloria Dietz

I've done a lot of traveling in my life time.  In fact, my first time out of the country was when I was 6 months old.  Admittedly, I don't remember it and the journey was primarily to visit relatives, but I have continued to travel to unfamiliar places throughout my lifetime.  I have been to a total of 15 different countries, but my most meaningful experience in an unfamiliar place was in my own country.  During the summer of my freshman year of high school I attended the Duke TiP program on Duke's West Campus for 3 weeks.  It was my longest experience away from home and, more importantly, away from my parents. 

There I confirmed something I already knew, but had not previously tested: I could take care of myself. There I realized I could function independently.  I also found much comfort in living with people like me, who actually wanted to learn and who had the same interests, beliefs, humor, and thinking as me.  That experience though only for a little less than a month showed me that I was actually ready for something that seemed so far away at the time: college.  I realized that college was not some hardship away from home, but would become my home, much like it did in those short 3 weeks that seemed so long.  I was then, and am now ready to go to college and actually live and learn with people who are like me, in an environment where I can thrive.