#mu17

Alright, just kidding, I'm working like 30-summin' hours a week because DURING THE YEAR I TEND TO GET POOR. 

Anyway I thought I'd let you guys in a lil' bit on how my summer is. 

Hot.

Yeah. That's a concise summary of my whole summer. 

Okay but besides that, it's been nice to have time to really sit and collect my thoughts. 

You know how you have to leave someplace in order to miss it? The old adage expressed in a rock ballad by Cinderella, "You don't know what you got (till it's gone)?" 

True. So true. I really miss walking everywhere and being surrounded by people who are so different yet similar enough to where you feel like you kinda know them already. 

But here is a real live vid of me and my classmates coming back to campus in August:

But for those of you wondering, here is my summer in brief pictures.

My roommate next year, Kassie, came to visit and it looked like this:

I then showed a two year old The Lion King for the first time and it looked like this:

I paid a visit to me old stompin' grounds (high school) and it looked like this:

I even tried some of the Oprah Chai and it looked like this: (Warning: funny chalk art to follow)

As you can see, I've really had an adventurous and spiritually strenuous summer vacation. 

Honestly, I'm so ready to be back splorin' the old MKE.

Cheers, ya'll. 

Send me questions, I'm obviously decaying from boredom. 

Being home from college has taught me many things: the importance of daytime documentaries on the bio channel, how much more adult-y I became over the course of the year, how much time there really is in a day despite my previous stupor in its perceived brevity, and, of course, how much I am unhealthily obsessed with Harry Potter.

Since I've already discussed Harry Potter on this thing, I should maybe focus on the "adult-y" part.

What constitutes as an adult? My answer to this has, to say the least, evolved over the years. When I was a baby, I probably didn't understand the concept of age, time, or maturity, so I can guess that I had no answer and instead opted for my bottle. But as I learned to walk and talk, I'm sure it had something to do with having babies or having a job. Then, I escaped into the abyss that is pre-teenhood (?) and I can assure you it involved a decaying age and paying bills. That, mind you, laced with some melodramatic quote or angsty song by some stupid band with an ironic name. You know, cuz. 

But now as I stand on this great precipice staring into my inevitable transformation into my own adult-y-ness, I have concluded that being an adult, being a true adult is defined by your ability to place others and their own ideas, concerns, and fears before your own.  I believe that this also walks hand-in-hand with realizing that you have no answers, nor even half of the answers to the things you thought you would when you were a child. (I mean, I still don't understand the financial aid process or why people like beer. Beyond me, truly.)

Not having the answers is something I'm growing more comfortable in accepting. What am I going to do when I graduate with a degree in French and who knows what else? I'm not sure, yet I don't really care.

As a growing adult, I am realizing not simply the importance of education, but the rarity of it. How lucky I, a woman, am to have the opportunity to study openly and without fear of imprisonment or death. For me, part of being an adult also includes your awareness of your place in the world. 

So, for all of my new FRESHMEN following or reading this blog, I will leave you, as I am known to do, with a quote from mister John Green. A quote that I never get tired of. 

"Study broadly and without fear. Learn a language if you can, because that will make your life more interesting. Read a little bit every day. But most importantly surround yourself with people you like and make cool stuff with them. In the end, what you do isn't going to be as interesting as who you do it with."

And for all of you asking, "What should I even do with my life?" I give you this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lkn8MS3n8Q

Happy Summer, all. 

Let me tell you, the best feeling in the whole world is being home. 

(above: Real picture of me driving out of Kentucky into Tennessee)

Last time I slept in my own bed, played with my cats, and drove my child of a car was in January, and it had been killing me to be gone for so long. 

But here I am, slightly missing Marquette, yes. But oh so happy to be back in Nashville with my people. My days so far have been measured by welcoming hugs and infinite question-and-answer conversations; with lots of laughter and sunshine-threatening smiles.  

(Hehe ^^^)

Today marks my last day in my dorm... What?

Yes, it is over. Tomorrow I will be moving out and Saturday, I will be driving home.

It's bittersweet, really. I haven't been home since Christmas, and I miss my friends, cats, and family like crazy. (Not to mention Nashville) 

But on the other hand, I really am going to miss the crazy antics that come when you have thousands of almost-adult children with too much free time. 

Thinking back on where I started this year and where I ended up, I can honestly say that this has been the largest transformation I have undergone in such a small period of time. 

Marquette has taken me from my small corner in Milwaukee, to the South Side at a middle school (WHERE I SOMEHOW DIRECTED A MUSICAL?), to Chicago, to New York, and I've made friends from Rwanda, France, Puerto Rico, South Dakota, and many, many suburbs of Chicago. 

I hate to see this year go, but I cannot wait to see what my Sophomore year brings. 

So, to the Class of 2018 let me give you my advice for how to have the best Freshman experience ever:

Say "yes!" to more things.

Then, give those commitments everything you've got. 

Show 'em who's boss and make a lasting impression. 

For those of who new, here's a quick recap of my year:

Tomorrow, April 6th, marks the 20th anniversary of the start of the genocide in Rwanda, which is known as one of the absolute worst violations of human rights in history. It was a genocide where the world stood and watched. 

And I am apart of a group here at Marquette called, Step Up!, which supports Rwandan women and children who have since been struggling to rebuild their lives. And we look fabulous while doing it.

Being a milestone anniversary, we decided that we should organize an event to honor all those who were killed twenty years ago. After some of the most stressful weeks of planning in my life, somehow, everything worked out. 

Multi-award winning director and writer Marie-France Collard and human rights activist Martine Beckers flew in from Belgium to watch and discuss two of Collard's films- one of which features Beckers as she tries to convict the man who killed her sister, brother-in-law and niece. 

We were later joined by Emmanuel Habimana- orphaned at the age of 9 by the genocide, he navigated Rwanda by himself until he somehow convinced a group Interahamwe that he, himself, was Hutu, so that he could live. 

Hearing these people's stories were, humbling to say the least. They are all so welcoming, warm, open, honest, and pensive. I still am in shock that I was apart of organizing this event, and that I am surrounded by so many interesting people in the International community at Marquette as well as the Foreign Language Department. They have all helped me grow and have given me a permanent home for the next three years, BECAUSE MY FRESHMAN YEAR IS ALMOST OVER.

But wait one more picture because Emmanuel is so adorable.

At any rate, merci beaucoup Marquette et Step Up!, je suis très heureuse de faire votre connaissance.