My Semester in Seattle

When I left my small town in Ohio last September, I had never lived away from home. My university offered me one semester in Seattle, and I said yes before I could get scared. I lived in a small room on the university campus, far from everyone I knew. By the end of the semester, I had made two close friends, passed all my classes, and learned how to be alone without being lonely.

Seattle's rain was the first surprise. It rained almost every day in October. At first, I hated it. Then my roommate, Clara, lent me a yellow rain jacket and showed me the city: the public library with its glass walls, the market by the water, and the small coffee shops where students study for hours.

The work was harder than at home. My history professor gave long assignments, and I spent many evenings in the library. I felt homesick in November, especially when my family had Sunday dinner without me. But Clara's family invited me for Thanksgiving, and their kindness carried me through the hard weeks.

I came home in December with more than good grades. I knew how to cook five dinners, how to ask strangers for help, and how to enjoy my own company, and I felt more confident than the girl who had left Ohio. The semester taught me that being independent does not mean doing everything alone. It means knowing when to ask, and whom to thank.