Exploring Liberty Seminar!

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I was invited to this Exploring Liberty Seminar at Princeton University. It was totally free so i decided to check it out. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would have met the people that I met, and became friends with the people I befriended!

I am always nervous entering into something I know nothing about. Then again, who isn't? I walk into my enormously wonderful dorm to find my roomate on her cell phone. I will admit it. The sheer fact that she was a college student intimidated me. The fact that I later realized I was by far the youngest person at the entire seminar...that went far beyond intimidation and straigt to crapping my pants in fear! But we'll get more into that later.

The first lecture was a grand welcome to Princeton University, here are the rules, ok well there are not many rules but just don't act like an a******. I learned quickly that if I acted like I had just graduated from college instead of high school people tended to believe me...until they asked what grad school i would be attending. It always ended the same "OMG" "CONGRATS" "wow, no way you're that young" haha But I will admit it, I felt pretty freaking cool being the baby there.

As much fun as being the baby is, I was a little left behind. Most other students had at least a year of college classes on economics and I had 0, zip, not a thing! So I felt pretty useless, but I added in where I could.

THe second most obvious thing there was the eating schedule. For some reason they felt the need to feed us every hour and forty-five minutes about. Breakfast, lecture, break, lecture, lunch, break, lecture, break, lecture, dinner....get my drift? Don't get me wrong, the food was amazing, BUT combine 5000 calories a day with sitting on your butt in lectures all day. Let me let you in on a little secret it doesn't equal that supermodel body. haha

There were 70-80 college students there, most from differnet countries around the world. That was amazing. As I started to meet each one I felt the fire in me grow hotter and hotter and bigger and bigger. THat fire that wanted to meet so many new people and travel the world and do some good...yea that fire! Everyone was so amazing, and smart, and funny, and easygoing. I couldn't believe it.

The last day there was heartbreaking. Not only were we not able to give proper good-byes because of schedules, but i had to say good-bye to some of my newest but dearest friends. Some returned to Washington, and New York, and Colorado. Others ventured home to Ireland, Africa, and Romania. It's such an amazing thing to feel so connected and so close to so many new people that I've only been able to get to know for a week. Many people don't feel that in their entire life, and I felt that for numerous people after one week. However, I will try with all powers that I have to see some of them. If it means taking a weekend trip to NYC, or spending the last of my money to fly to Romania, or Slovokia...then so be it. I will do it!

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