A Brief Reprieve

This is a difficult period in my and, I am sure, many of my fellow Yalies' lives. It is the second semester of my junior year, and between normal classes, AP tests, SATs, trying to get a summer job, and all my other standard responsibilities it can be a lot to handle. On the bright side it is great practice for Yale.

My day today began with the AP Calculus BC Exam which went from 8 in the morning to almost 1 in the afternoon. The rest of the school day was relatively easy, and soon enough I was off to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the program I do there on Wednesdays.  I finished up, returned home, and before I knew it it was time to get ready to meet up with the ILC group.

The trip there was uneventful. Everyone spent the time socializing and getting to know one another better. Once we arrived at the restaurant the true fun began. The group consisted of the Yale cohort (with each of us bringing one parent), a large group of Yale alumni (many of them recently graduated), some IlC sponsors, and of course the ILC leaders: Don Gosney, Madeline Kronenberg, and Charles Ramsey. We socialized for a little while before being seated and I learned a few interesting things about Yale. It has a system, almost unanimously described as being similar to Harry Potter, in which students are split randomly into separate colleges. They then live with, eat with, study with, and bond with the people in their college, while developing a (mostly) friendly spirit of competition with the other colleges.

The ILC's private room

After everyone was seated the formal part of the night began. First everyone introduced themselves, then there were a series of speeches. I was selected to be one of the speakers and asked to talk about how I would give back to my community after my time at Yale. I was a little nervous and missed a few of my talking points, but I was happy with my speech in the end. Everyone who gave a speech did a fantastic job; I felt truly moved by their words.

I realize that I neglected to describe about a very important detail... the main part of the event... dinner! The meal was unsurprisingly fantastic. Although I am not normally a fan of salad, the Caesar salad served as first course blew me away and I enjoyed every bite. I chose filet mignon for the second course and was not disappointed. Finally the desert, chocolate cake with ice cream, was a pleasant end to the meal.

It was a fantastic night, and an enjoyable break from the stress of junior year. I made some connections with Yale alums, one a venture capitalist and one an entrepreneur, who were both very friendly and urged me to reach out if I needed advice or help with anything especially relating to college. I am growing closer to my cohort with every milestone we reach together. I could not ask for a better group to face the challenge that is Grand Strategies with me.

Next week is the school board meeting, but before then I have an essay to write, two AP tests to take, and an interview for my summer job. I cannot wait for summer.