So for years my mother has asked me to make a "newsletter" to send out updating people on my life, and I always thought it was the most ridiculous and silly idea in the world: why would someone want to hear about me? Well, it is that time where I am not necessarily going to consider myself an interesting person, but rather admit that I am at an interesting point in my life. With this as the case, I decided that I really should tell people what is going on in my life and I wonder who will ever stumble upon this blog. This is going to be a long one, so bear with me. If you just want to know what I will be doing next year, scroll to the bottom.
This summer I had the amazing opportunity to be an intern at the Google headquarters [yes, the Google, as in Google.com, Gmail, Blogger, etc.] and it was a blast. I worked in People Operations with the University Programs and Product Marketing teams and loved the work that I did and the people that I worked with. So many sources say it is one of the best places to work, and I definitely agree-- all perks pushed aside, the people are amazing. I lived in San Francisco for the summer and it was great to finally see what the northern part of California was like. I really loved this summer! I was fortunate enough to get an offer from Google to work full-time after graduation! The summer after my freshman year I was a volunteer English teacher in Indonesia and the summer after my sophomore year I spent the first part competing against the Oxford and Cambridge University track teams in England, then came back and worked at a boarding school [Southwestern Academy] in San Marino, CA.
And now I am just living the life of a college senior. Can you believe it?! I am having trouble realizing that I am 21 years old and soon to end my undergraduate career at Harvard. I feel like I just got here!
As usual, I am keeping myself pretty busy: I am president of a club called The Pleiades Society
(we went caroling for cans yesterday! We sang carols in the nearby neighborhoods and asked for can donations for the homeless shelter in return) which just finished a very successful recruitment season, chair of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (and Harvard representative for the Ivy League SAAC), hoping to be a volunteer track coach for a youth track club in Cambridge, and of course...a member of the track and field team. Being a varsity athlete takes up a lot of time, but I am loving it. I have come a very, very long way since I joined the track team freshman year, and since I have been here I have broken the 4x100m relay record twice (2006, 2008) and the indoor long jump record (2008). We had our first meet of the season yesterday and I started with a long jump that was 10-inches farther than this time last year, so things are looking good. I am hoping to get a few more records before I graduate. :)Also, I decided that I wanted a new talent my senior year, so last Friday I performed in a dance show with Expressions Dance Company. It was pretty fun, but since I am not a trained dancer it was much harder for me to pick up moves quickly. In the end I had fun performing and my friends told me I looked great on the stage, so I am happy! It was a hip-hop dance and if you want me to show you any moves, just let me know, haha.
Hmm... other senior year things. Well, we beat Yale again for the 125th meeting of the Harvard-Yale football game. The score this year was 10-0 and the temperature dropped to the single digits during the game. Our football boys [including my boyfriend!] are Ivy League Champions again!
This year was the first Thanksgiving that I left Boston for, and I went home with Andrew [boyfriend] and spent it with his family. It was great actually being in a house and eating a homecooked meal... I never knew how that would matter so much. His family is absolutely fantastic and the Thanksgiving festivities included a Soul Train line, karaoke, and a dance-off. No joke. It was definitely the best Thanksgiving I have had in a long time!
And now on to what I am doing next year. Saturday after my track meet the Harvard Fellowships Office called to notify me that I was selected to received the Michael Rockefeller Memorial Fellowship. Given to about 5 seniors each year, this fellowship awards $18,000 for the purpose of meaningful travel. It is a great honor and privilege to have been awarded this fellowship and I am really grateful for this opportunity. Next year I will be living in South Africa to help create educational organizations for orphans and vulnerable children affected by HIV/AIDS. I am also hoping to use my love for photojournalism [once I buy a camera!] and have the photos used to help create awareness and raise money for AIDS once I return to the states. I am hoping to live in KwaZulu-Natal and work with an organization called Thandanani, or many of the other similar organizations I have contacted. I am a bit terrified of the fact that 80% of the population there speaks Zulu, which is a clicking language very different from English, but I am really excited about the challenge. Once I am done, I am hoping to come back and work at Google (it was terrifying turning such a great offer down!) and possibly eventually get my MBA.
Wow, that was a lot... but now you are up to speed. I am hoping to use this blog to start talking about my preparations going into my year abroad, and maybe even a little life update or to as I go through my senior year in college [ah!!!].
