Winter Reflection

This winter quarter was my hardest quarter thus far (and hopefully ever) at UW, and honestly some of the worst days I think I've ever experienced (not to be dramatic). A couple of factors made this quarter incredibly challenging, including working, a full STEM course load (biochemistry, molecular and cell biology, and physics), and a horribly stressful experience trying to organize and find housing for next year. However, the thing that made it the worst was a somewhat devastating friendship breakup that happened suddenly in January. One of my friends, a friend I'd had a relationship with since elementary school and had grown extremely close to in college, ended our relationship over text. While I wasn't completely shocked, and there was a small part of me that was relieved, since our friendship had been struggling for a bit, it was still devastating. I don't think I'd ever gone through any sort of relationship breakup so traumatizing before, and it hit me really hard. Having that happen two weeks into the quarter caused massive stress, anxiety, sadness, and anger - a whole host of emotions that were difficult to deal with on top of the many other stresses in my life. That situation, combined with the extremely stressful and anxiety-inducing experience of trying to find a house to live in next year for seven girls, created a January and February that were truly two of the worst months of my life. To be honest, I don't have a ton to say about winter quarter besides "I survived, thank god." However, there were a few good parts, which I'll share below in an attempt to remain somewhat positive and also demonstrate that I am #ok.

First, I was able to invest time and energy into new relationships (where I was actually appreciated!). I met some people, including my next-year roommates, that I'm really excited to build relationships with. I became closer to some of my other friends (shoutout Monze, Gabby, Nicole, and Gali), and I strengthened my relationship with my roommate and best friend Arushi. Even though I lost a keystone friendship, I'm still incredibly grateful to have many amazing friends who care about me, and I'm focusing on pursuing and investing in friendships with people I respect, who care for and respect me.

I also was able to academically survive, somehow. This was definitely also one of my most difficult quarters academically and time-wise, considering I was taking three intensive science classes and working a significant number of hours, as well as keeping up with my Hillel internship. Somehow though, I was able to do pretty well in my classes still (earning four graded credits for my research was absolutely a smart decision, thanks, past Lola). I got a satisfactory GPA and was still able to get Dean's List, so I feel pretty proud of myself for not totally flopping academically during this really hard quarter.

Finally, after many trials and tribulations, I was able to find a nice house to live in next year with a good group of girls, including some friends and some new people (hopefully future friends). The process was, and I cannot understate this, exhausting, but we did end up finding a nice house on a good street that I'm pretty happy with. I'm excited to have the house experience for my senior year, and I'm really excited to pay less money! That was the other main win of my quarter.

Overall, winter quarter was a period of survival and I'm so incredibly glad it's over. There's not much more to say besides that. Please enjoy some pictures of my MUCH-needed Palm Springs spring break vacation.