Orientation Motivation

Two more weeks until I get onto that airplane and say goodbye for good! Well, for a month anyways.

Today was the orientation for the summer program as well as the last meeting before the trip. The meeting started out with everyone gathered at a local middle school's multipurpose room at which Don began talking about the program. After his speech that was sprinkled with little anecdotes here and there about past ILCers, we moved on to break off to our cohorts. There, we talked the specifics of the trip, such as departure time, traveling dates, and other things. It was so exciting hearing all the details of the trip! The more I've been hearing about this trip, the more real it's becoming. I am starting to get a clearer image of what this experience is really going to be like, and I cannot wait to get there!

One of the aspects of the trip we discussed in depth was the first week. During that time, we will be touring lots of schools (Princeton, MIT, and Harvard are among some of them) and will be having dinners with alumni of the schools practically every night. I am very happy to have all those opportunities to branch out and talk with new people who have achieved such great things. Being able to surround myself with living examples of where hard work can get me is a great motivator to keep me going strong my last year of high school. 

After meeting with our cohorts, we gathered once again to hear some last things Don had to say. He went over what to expect of the dorms and what we needed to pack in order to be prepared for the crazy New York weather. Some new things I will have to adjust to is the humid, yet sometimes stormy weather that is a typical New York summer. Over in the Bay Area, I am used to sunny skies with a slight breeze, so this radical change might take some getting used to. Another issue he warned against was overpacking (which I am unfortunately guilty of). Because we will only be getting one checked bag, I really need to keep in check what is going into my bag. Looks like my whole closet can't come with me! 

We wrapped things up pretty quickly (as it is a school night) and Don dismissed all the parents and ILCers. I know that practically every blog of mine always screams how excited I am to be going on this trip, but what else can you expect a small town girl to do when she is going to a big city? Even though there are only two weeks until our departure, I have a feeling those two weeks are going to feel like two years.