The first thing that comes to mind when talking about my first semester here is that it was a rollercoaster ride for sure. The fears that had before college was if I was going to be able to fit in and make more friends in my field. Coming into OSU, I already had my friends from high school with me and I also know some upperclassmen from work but I know that I won’t be able to see them all the time or in my classes because we were all studying different things with different plans for the future. The other fear that I still have is if what I choose will be the right choice, the right path that I truly can be happy or not. Coming into OSU, I was in the prenursing program because my mom told me to pick it. Even at orientation, I already felt like I don’t belong but I hoped that during the semester I would eventually fit in because it was just orientation, of course it would be awkward and uncomfortable. But towards the end of the first semester, I now knew for a fact that this is not where I belong and I guess I didn’t fit in for a reason. Nursing was not my calling. I kind of got hints when I felt like I only worked hard because I needed to but not because I wanted to. The stress of uncertainties and other personal factors really took a toll on me. On some days I would be fine and other days I would feel horrible and sometimes it would be in the same day. This is why I mentioned that it was a rollercoaster, a rollercoaster of emotions, stress, interests, and self care. Everyday blurred together and my days moved both fast and slow at the same time. Then one day, I took time for myself to really think. Eventually, I questioned myself on why am I stressing so much for a major that I didn’t even pick or really interested in when I could do something else, something that I could be happy with. It was hard because my mom wants me to be a nurse or some high position job but I am not like that at all. There’s money but will I be happy? I value happiness more than money but my mom has the old-school mindset that money and security is more important than your happiness but I believe in well-being. But surprising when I told her, she was accepting but questioned me on what I will major in then. “I don’t know” I told her but I am being honest. I really don’t know what I want to do but I believe that with time, I can find my dreams again and finally create the path for me to go down. And a wrap up of everything in my first semester, I was stressed from the beginning, confused, depressed, but finally felt like a weight how been lifted. My experiences so far has helped me grow stronger and also developing my own dreams. Aside from my developing experiences, my experiences with the Humanities Scholars so far has been interesting and fun. The tour we took made me feel like a kid again because I was exposed to something new and that kid curiosity kicked in. This class was the most fun because we did things that were simulating. We got to be creative and we also learned a lot of things, including Life Lessons, that we would never get in any other class. Overall, the experiences were really fun and I got to make new friends that are going to stick with me even after the last class. I would like to be involved in Humanities Scholar in the future by attending more of the things on the calendar. Because I didn’t get to schedule my class the first semester and the fact that I commuted, I missed  a lot of opportunities for points but also the bonding of the Humanities community. And so, I would like to be able to do more of the activities and events to be more involved with Humanities Scholars.

Vianna Luu’s Story

“It was June 16, 1999, when I was born. I was the second half Thai, half Vietnamese child and daughter for my parents. My sister Vanessa was born in November, two years before me, but since she was born later, and I was born in the summer, we attended school about only one year apart. About three years later in March, we were gifted a younger brother by the unique name of Verich; we call him Richy for short ever since we can even remember. Two more years in July, our youngest brother Victor was born, and now our family of six is complete, with an exception of pets of course. Most of my infanthood was spent with my sister in a small apartment my parents lived in, our dynamic was perhaps a bit atypical. We were very close, but of course she would hog all the cookies and balloons for herself, I still remember being quite upset about those things, hah. We also both loved to doodle, and would do so fervently on the walls.

That’s when I knew that I had a thing, or I guess, a passion, for art. I drew a lot in preschool and I loved it. I have a best friend named Kelly who knew me even since then, and we recall those days where I would rather sit at the table and draw and not do anything else. In kindergarten, everyone asked me to draw pictures in their journals for them and I got used to it since I enjoyed drawing, but I would often get in trouble for not finishing up my own work. Back then, I was a quite hyperactive, and friendly kid, who loved animals, especially cats. In elementary, we got a mutt named Tiny, and soon after, a cat who was no longer wanted by her owner, Angel. Angel was a sleek black and white cat who was quite prickly, and Tiny was a little brown chihuahua-like dog that barked at everyone and would bite off the heads of toys.

My first pets weren’t perfect, but I loved them for their imperfections and quirks, they were also quite endearing and charming. They are no longer in this world, and it was sad to see them off, but I will forever remember them in my heart. At one point I had 5 dogs and 11 cats, crazy I know. We just let our cats become feral as I developed allergies to them, and gave away our dogs… Which I also now have allergies to. I remember having parakeets, goldfish, betta fish, guinea pigs, hermit crabs, and even snails for pets too. When I was a kid, I primarily loved two things, animals and art. And what better way to combine it then making crappy cat animations on the internet using a mouse? Fifth grade was that sort of experimental age for me, and so I also decided to pick up the clarinet after being told I can’t play the violin since there aren’t any more in fourth grade.

In middle school it took me a while until I found my own niche of friends. It was hard to fit in since I really was a strange and hyper kid back then, I was very imaginative and talkative, so it’s a bit embarrassing if I think back to it. I had a friend group of artists, for a while, things were great, and hanging out with them was fun, but I could tell at one point that most of them just thought of me as the side friend. I found new friends after that, a lot of them were artists too, but our whole group was much more inclusive and diverse culturally and ethnically, I don’t remember feeling excluded at all when I was with them. We were that group of odd ball kids that laughed uncontrollably loud in the corner like we were in our own little world. I miss those days, but I also cherished high school as well even though I mostly went because of my sister.

I could have gone to the high school mostly everyone at my middle school was going to and continue with my awesome group of friends, but I started fresh in high school. Most of the people already had their own cliques from middle school and I was alone. Oh yeah, I also started doing marching band too, I didn’t know I was at first of course, so I was the newbie that didn’t even go to band camp so I was the most behind on everything and I had to work extra hard. Later, I found my old friend from preschool and elementary school, Kelly. We reconnected and are still very good friends. I also made some new friends on the way that I am also grateful for as well.

In my upperclassmen years of high school, I really wanted to slack off a lot, but it’s very stressful when you take AP classes and college classes. On top of that I had joined as many extracurriculars as imaginable: key club, chess club, mock-trial, academic league, and one of my favorites, art club. Even though I still love art, I did not have much time for it due to marching band and my academics, so I joined art club for fun, I ate food there and hung out with some cool people too. I also challenged myself by learning a new instrument for concert band too, the oboe. The shape and fingerings are quite like the clarinet, so it was not hard to transfer over. But the way you used your mouth to play, and the amount of breath and support needed was a lot more. And even though there were some rough patches along the way, I would not trade my valuable experiences for anything.

I graduated June 3rd, 2017, as one of the valedictorians of Whetstone High School and now I attend the Ohio State University, much to my surprise… I am still undecided, but I’m sure I will find my true calling one day, whether it be with art, music, writing, science, or whatever. Honestly, the possibilities are endless. I’ve lived in Columbus, Ohio all my life with my family. And still do since OSU is so close. Though my siblings and even my parents can get on my nerves, deep down, we care a lot for each other and wish the best for one another. It’s hard, but I will need to try to be more independent as a university student, and work hard through all distractions and troubles thrown at me. So, even if my path is very unsure right now, I really hope that everyone will support the choices I will continue to make later in this uncertain life.”

[Artifacts are the items you consider to be representative of your academic interests and achievements. For each entry, include both an artifact and a detailed annotation.  An annotation is a reflective description of the artifact that attempts to communicate its significance.  For more information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]