La Vita Nova: Part Two

Coming back to DC offers a strange transitional period to someone who has lived in a small town for almost all his or her life. The first time I stepped onto this campus I felt like a small fish that was suddenly taken from his humble pond to a massive ocean full of strange yet wondrous creatures. When I came back to North Carolina I felt restrained by the smallness of my former pond, being used to the almost limitless reaches of the ocean of the District. And now that I am here again I feel a strange emotion that I can't explain. The scenery is familiar, I know where most of everything is, but I still feel sense of novelty towards my surroundings. To be honest, I will never feel that I truly belong in the District as I feel that I will never feel that I belong in North Carolina as I was born and raised in the murky streets of Baltimore until I was ten (and not feeling like a belong there either). Nonetheless, I am once again the small fish now looking to retrace my steps and swim to new places in the ocean.

But getting back to my baseline was for some reason more trouble than when I moved here the first time. I had trouble connecting to the school's internet (which took me almost an hour), I left a chaotic mess of near-empty boxes all around my room. And to top it all off I dropped my bookcase on my right foot when moving my things around (it hasn't felt the same since). In my mild frustration I was compelled to stop all that I was doing, get some food, and go to bed early. But I knew that I couldn’t do since I hate waking up to a bedlam of a room (just ask my last roommate). So I soldiered on one foot and finished unpacking everything two hours after my injury.

Fate would give me a reward for my patience and resilience. As I was on my way to the bathroom I meet up with a spunky freshman who was trying to get people have dinner in the school's cafeteria. Her efforts paid off as she brought about a dozen people with her for our dorm. In the cafeteria I was reunited with the semi-fresh smell of food as well as the large crowd of people that I constantly had to dodge to avoid crashing into while filling my plates. I returned to my college staple of a heap of salad, a handful of fries, a bowel of honeydew and cantaloupe, a toasted bagel, and a glass of orange juice. I was the only upperclassman so every asked me questions of the best places to eat, watch a movie, and go clubbing.

After dinner me the freshman did what every other college student does in DC after eating, go to the National Mall. I was honestly surprised that these newcomers would be more willing to see a bunch of monuments rather than go out to the ever-pervasive frat party. When ended up taking the metro to downtown DC and walked to the Mall. Night filled the sky and the lights of the area gave the monuments more aesthetic than what could have been seen during the day. We did not get a chance to see all of the Mall but made the best of what we did see (laying on your back up close to the Washington Monument makes it seem like you can walk on it).

All in all, my first day back helped me realize the limitless possibilities that this strange place has to offer. I honestly have no plans on what to do here, but I now that Fate will guide me to whatever I set myself up to. I am looking forward to starting my new life…again.