Day 365: The middle of the universe is here.

Day 365 began in beautiful gap year style. I woke up late to lazy meditation and leisurely yoga before meeting Allie Pace, my Peer Advising Fellow, for lunch and coffee at the quaint Café Pamplona.

This was the perfect way to start my last gap day. Allie was eager and excited to hear stories about my year in detail, and made me go back and appreciate, once again, the incredible experiences I've been blessed enough to enjoy this year, from Brasil to Bogotá to Bombay to Boston. She certainly invited me to think about every aspect of my life as a student and a person, and we enthusiastically celebrated the beauty that is life and love and learning.

A comment Allie made about only having two years left here at Harvard reminded me immediately of Marina Keegan's "Bygones," which I read to Allie at the table, leaving her, as it should have, speechless. My goal was to have memorized the poem by now, but I'm a bit behind. However, as "Bygones" has been one of the most influential and inspiring pieces of writing for me, I decided to do a reading for you all today as I did from Rostand's Cyrano on Day 1.

The video is a bit unsynced, so I may suggest just listening.


After my meeting with Allie, I headed to the Science Center for a series of presentations called "How to Harvard." The first of these was to instruct us on how to sign up for classes, and the second was on study tips and best reading practices. The latter was a welcome reminder of how slowly I read (and how short my attention span has become). Javier and I bemoaned our skimming abilities together before going to the Coop, which hosts a delicious array of Harvard gear. We spent nearly an hour looking for an academic planner for Javier, and a notebook that would "feel like success" when he held it in his hands. I was not nearly so ambitious, but did manage to pick up a small treat for myself.


It was back to the dorm after this to start this post before dinner with my very own Anne Marie! I'm so happy to know so many fabulous upperclassmen here, and it was lovely to scarf down salads at Oggi as we caught up on all the summer's Latin drama. Breathless after gossiping endlessly, I returned to my room to meditate before going out again.

I'm now on my way to an outdoor screening of Legally Blonde, a meeting with my proctor, and the First Chance Dance, to which I am proud to be escorting my bro Tina Qian. It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood!

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