End of Semester

So today the first semester came to a close. When I was doing the registration cards last year, I definitely underestimated the amount of work those classes would entail. Actually, I overestimated my ability to manage time well. But I don't have any regrets about how I've been performing and I am glad about that. It will be interesting how classes shift in the second semester. I would like to see teachers start preparing us for AP Exams as soon as possible.

Students deserve a week off after the first semester of junior year. I wouldn't mind swapping a week of summer vacation for one right now. But I made best of the half-day today by visiting my elementary school teachers. I hadn't visited them since leaving for Oxford so it was a good reunion. I truly believe that elementary school teachers play an important role in a child's development. Teachers can make the process of learning enjoyable for students and get them excited about life. My 4th and 5th grade teachers did that, and I am very grateful to them.

After visiting my elementary, I walked to La Palma Hospital for my physical. This meant I had a chance to walk on the winding trail that cuts across the huge patches of meadows behind the school. It is really fascinating how a faceless chunk of land in the winter transforms as the seasons come and go. It is my only connection with nature where I live, but sometimes it's sufficient. In the spring, you can really feel the vigor of new life as you walk on new grass. Fall brings about the most dramatic changes; green will turn russet and reddish brown, and rings of flower petals form around tree trunks.

Anyway, I digress. Two noteworthy things happened on my way to the hospital. 1) I saw Andrew Park driving a big black van that reminded me of Escalade. He looked like Rambo. 2) A bunch of white guys in a compact car said "Fuck you" as they drove past me. As they stopped at the red light, I actually shouted without thinking, "Manifest destiny can't save you from black people." Their brief reply was the same as their opening argument.

Oh, and Mrs. Spencer now knows two things about me: 1) I like Latinas and 2) I like Hannah Montana. Neither piece of information helps me at all in that class. Have a nice three-day break everyone.