I was applying for some scholarship online yesterday and one of the questions was: What is the most important thing you have learned in the last year?

I was stumped! Surely I learned something in the last year. I left my computer for a bit, thought that as I was busying myself around the office it would come to me...it never did. I started to get worried (thinking bubble) .o0O You mean I spent all that money to go away to college and I dont even have anything to answer? O0o.

But no...the problem was that I learned too much.

I learned that friends make the living worthwhile. I learned that even when you say that you wont, you WILL go out to party before a big exam. I learned that you will once again rely on afternoon naps as you did long ago. I learned that sometimes you really do need to study, especially when you think that you don't. I learned that getting a well-rounded education is much more important than getting a degree. I learned that sometimes a polite smile to someone on the way to class can lead to a world of friendship. I learned that parents will be greatly missed, even when I thought I would never admit that out loud. I learned how hard it is being isolated from your family when you're going through one of the roughest moments in your life (grandpa passing away mid-semster). I learned that your friends will hurt just as much when they watch you hurt. I learned that some of the best times you will have at school will be in your dorm room--locked up for a Friday night with your friends, just talking.

I learned a lot last year...

but the most important thing that I learned was that this world is so small. I am no longer isolated in Huntington, WV. The world to me is much bigger than my town, but yet much smaller...smaller because everyone you meet will have something in common with you. Everyone you meet with have gone through many of the same things you have gone through--cried the same tears, smiled the same smiles. I was so naive in high school, only seeing my community as my world. I do not see fully yet, but I do see beyond what I once did. Isn't it amazing how small the world really is? Think about it, it is.

Counting down the days...

I'm counting down the days until I no longer have to work two jobs. I am counting down the days till I can wake up to sunlight, not an alarm clock. I am counting down the days until I can splash around in cool water on a hot afternoon. I am counting the days until I am greeted at the front door with hugs and kisses from the girls(all three that I think of as my little sisters) that I haven't seen since sadder times. I am counting down the days until I get to spend nine hours in the car, just driving with nothing else that I need to do. I am counting down the days until I can judge the artistic ability of Caitlin's jumps into the pool. I am counting down the days until I can bond with Carly as more of a peer, than the young girl she once was. I am counting down the days till my Aunt Marcia makes her famous Macaroni and Cheese that I am such a fan of. I am counting down the days till David asks me again to stay down in GA and go to college and Kennesaw State. I am counting the days till Chelyan and I can put our creative minds to work on a project in her room. I am counting the days till I can lay on the hot sand and bask in the sun. I am counting the days until the wet sand sticks to my feet, no matter how hard I try to wash it off. I am counting down the days to windy nights sitting in the cool sand. I am counting the days...

until...

Until I can be with my family...

...my little "sisters"...
..my Aunt Marcia, who has been more than just an Aunt, but a friend...
....my Uncle David, who always makes me feel at home and welcomed...

Man, how sad..I haven't written since Friday. It is probably because I had such a wild and crazy weekend, "SYKE" Well I had orientation yesterday, for transfer students. It wasn't as bad as I expected. The first person I see as I walk in the Student Center is Katie Latrell (Sp?) from Morehead. The first new person I meet is also a transfer student from Morehead. Her name is Cassandra. So Cassandra and I spent all day hanging out and talking about the ole' head. I didn't quite meet anyone that would be living under my reign on the 13th floor, but I met a few girls that would be on lower floors. I ended up getting all the classes I wanted. My latin class was full but the teacher was there and she just gave me an override right then and there. Met a few of the residence guys that hired me (the mysterious faces behind the conference calls), met and talked to the Dean of Students (eeek..hope I dont see him again or its b/c I'm in trouble!) Met a guy from GV that played baseball, good ole rivals. All in all had a good day. Then went to work at the tanning bed. Then went to visit my grandpa. Didn't get home till 10ish, fell asleep before talking to Luke..and here I am at work, still asleep.