Mind the Gap
As a starting freshman at USC last fall, I was so daunted and overwhelmed by the abnormal transition into online university; I didn’t necessarily feel proud of the academic work I was doing. My mental health was inconsistent at best. Thus, I made the decision to take a Leave of Absence for the Spring 2021 semester. Honestly, I don’t regret it for a second. I have more time to try new things. I get to enjoy Taiwan, my home, in a way that I couldn’t in the past due to lack of time. I get to cherish these last few months with my family before I am off to college on the other side of the world. Most importantly, I get to reground myself after what has been such a chaotic year. I am optimistic that after this gap semester, I will be re-energized and eager to return to university. In this blog post, I just wanted to share some of the things I have been doing during my gap semester.
Learning a New Language
For all four years of high school, my parents insisted on having me continue to take Mandarain classes to maintain what comprehension I already had. I’m not proud of it, but I purposely tested poorly on my foreign language placement test so I could cruise through my language classes. Naturally, I became comfortable in not challenging myself linguistically. Ironic to my laziness, I have always been jealous of my friends who are trilingual or more, so I have occasionally dabbled with Duolingo (a free language learning app) but I have never been fully committed. Thus, for my gap semester, I finally enrolled myself in Spanish classes. I’m not going to lie, at first, I was really shy about it because I thought it was so embarrassing to be starting the language so late. However, I’m really glad I am taking Spanish lessons. To begin with, I am taking the class in a physical classroom, which was refreshing after a semester of online university. Likewise, I believe learning Spanish is a great segway into learning other Romance languages and appreciating even more cultures. Deciding to take Spanish lessons has reminded me that it’s seriously never too late to learn something new. As long you're interested, take the leap.
Reading
Each semester, classes assign countless readings. When I am in school, it has always been difficult to balance recreational reading when I already have so much required reading for classes. During the school semester, it’s hard to not view reading as a chore. This gap has given me the time to read just for the sake of reading. It has been an absolute pleasure to freely choose what I am reading, and enjoy words on paper in different locations, whether that be a park bench on a sunny day, the beach, or cozily in my bed. I have also been tutoring a 4th grader, and he just reads to me from his iPad. I have always struggled with unconfidence in retaining scientific knowledge. In college, biology/ chemistry/ astrophysics, etc. can be really intimidating. However, it’s been an absolute pleasure to read about these subjects again in a 4th grade level just to get re-interested in topics that seem daunting in university. It’s a reminder to take hold of your own learning.
Painting
The summer before my 1st semester at USC, my mom invited me to her painting class. My mom has never considered herself artistic, but as she struggled through some tough times, she discovered how soothing painting can be. While I have always known I have a creative side, it has taken me this long to really get into painting. Now, chatting with friends while blending colors and painting anything I want on an empty canvas is one of my favorite pastimes. Right after last semester's exams, I finished this painting that has water exploding out of a person's distressed face. The more I look at it, the more I realize I was probably subconsciously expressing how I felt last semester for online university. This reminded me of how therapeutic it is to sometimes visualize and release your emotions, through whatever medium or activity that fits you. Don’t feel the need to bottle it all up.
Surfing
I have always loved the water. As cheesy as it may sound, when you're around the ocean, the sound of the waves and the ocean breeze can really temporarily wash your worries and doubts away. During online school, especially during midterms and finals week, I could be awake but feel really groggy due to inconsistent sleep patterns. I hated that feeling. The adrenaline of jumping into the water/ the ocean never fails to not only wake me up, but feel truly alive and living. It jumpstarts all my senses and is a great natural high to start the day. Learning to surf is hard. As of now, I don’t want a camera anywhere near to record my hideous wipeouts. However, it has been an ultra fun and challenging addition to my life and I hope to continue when I am in LA.
1 Second Everyday: Video Diary
This is one of my favorite apps on my iPhone, as you can record 1 second of any moment of your day. The app helps compile the moments into a video journal. So far in life, I haven’t really been interested in committing to a YouTube channel or anything like that. However, this app basically makes life vlogs for me. Although I was much less consistent, I actually began trying the app at the start of 2020. Little did I know how out of the ordinary 2020 was going to be. When life started to become so hectic and confusing, I was and am thankful to have my video diary to refer back to, to remember the small moments that were and are good. With my gap semester, I am even more committed to capturing just one second of every day, including the good and the bad. I am confident that this habit will be invaluable in the future. It will be great to look back and be thankful for the memories. I urge everyone to leave some kind of memento of our youth. We have so much life ahead of us and we’re in for a bumpy and wild ride, remember to sit back and cherish the process.