Over the course of the past semester, I have grown tremendously as a person in all aspects of life. One aspect of myself that I believe has changed the most is the fact that I have learned to live in a brand new place surrounded by brand new people. Prior to coming to college, I had lived in the same town since the day I was born, surrounded by essentially the same exact people for the past 18 years. Yorktown was all I’ve ever known, and I absolutely love it to death and leaving there and all of the people that I love and have grown up with was probably the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. The first probably 2 months of being here were incredibly hard for me, all I wanted to do was go home and go back to the place and the people that made me the happiest and most comfortable. But, eventually, that hole in my heart just started to get a little bit smaller, and I found myself thinking about home less times during the day. I know that I’m never going to stop missing home no matter how hard I try, and some days it will be worse than others, but I’ve grown to realize that this place is absolutely incredible, and if I do have to be away from home, that this is the best place to be. I’ve opened myself up to new people, new experiences, new challenges, and I can’t wait to see what is in store for the rest of my time here and how much more I can grow as a person, friend, and student here at Ohio State.