Bridge over river Cam

I had always wanted to go abroad to study, and finally last August I did. It was HUGE for me to get the guts to go to Cambridge University all by myself- but I had been daydreaming about the old colleges, dining halls, residences, libraries, brilliant professors, and being immersed in such a distinguished academic environment. Would I be a different kind of student in such a setting? Would brilliant thoughts flow seamlessly to be articulated eloquently? I had to find out...

What I didn't expect about the trip was meeting kids so similar to myself. I mean, who goes to school for fun in the summer? Intelligent, liberated, sensitive, funny, intuitive, charming, interesting 20-somethings, who are curious about the world, who want to learn, and who have the confidence to do it. And as I keep in touch with my Cambridge chums, I realize that as far away as we all are from one another- as many languages as we speak, in as many countries as we are- we are all in the same place della nostra vita (as Dante would put it). We are all in transitional points, somewhat misguided and lost, trying to figure out where the hell we are headed. And when you are feeling lost and alone, there is nothing like finding people in the same spot as you, to aid in orientation.

Does this sound like an after-school special? My life is a lot like that these days....