MORE Notes to My Past Self (or, The End: Part Deux)

Whenever I have to pack for an occasion (vacation, college, a six-month stint in England), lists have always been my unfailing ally. So I thought, while I'm making list after list of what to bring home/leave behind next week, why not make a list of a few more things I learned from my time here? Also for, you know, continuity purposes and such (did you see "Part Un"?).

Of course it would be impossible to articulate everything I've learned, but here are the top ten that come to mind:

1. Say yes to more things. In the end, you’re the only one who can initiate your own personal growth. Being social may not be our strong suit, but no one ever got better at something by refusing to do it altogether. You owe it to yourself to expand your horizons and continue exploring how far you can go. 

2. Do not be afraid to sit in the stillness. Whether that means taking a break, cogitating on that essay argument, keeping your hands off that phone, dwelling in your feelings, or falling just short of that internship--there is no shame in the stasis. In fact, there is a profound wisdom. Sometimes it is in that silence that what we truly need the most calls out to us.

3. You love scones. You love them a lot. So much so that you will yell at your visiting friend for eating them the wrong way. And in a similar vein...

4. Afternoon teas = A WHOLE MEAL. Prepare accordingly.

5. Recognize the power of your own voice. This applies in terms of both verbal communication and written. It wasn’t until I came here that I realized my writing style was warily detached, playing it safe—flat, if you will. I was always conscious of making statements that were correct, so unquestionably correct that it often came off as boring. To me, writing creatively and writing critically always had to be separate. The tutorials I happened to take this term practically necessitated coming into my own voice. I’m not kidding when I say I felt mental and physical discomfort in being more assertive in my arguments, choosing bolder and more artistic words in my academic essays. But there was also the undeniable truth that when I write creatively, it is spurred and sustained by a passion and excitement to freely express myself—so why shouldn’t I apply those same feelings to a weekly assignment? The best writers (fictional or critical), as I have learned this term, are those who allow their unique mentality and flair to shine though. No matter what they are reflecting upon, they create something worth reading.

6. Love Island is an outrageous anthropological experiment involving some of the most basic, most egotistical UK millennials. But what you will be most concerned with is the potentially extreme lack of hygiene in the house.

7. The two most important terms to learn in the language of a country you’re visiting: “Thank you” and “Excuse me.” Both will (or should) come up a lot during your time there. I feel like a) it’s always nice to be thanked in your own language, and b) if you want to get through a busy street or crowded metro, there’s a 99% chance that the people around you will not listen if you try to talk to them in a different language. For everything else, it’s okay to sound like a clueless American—because like it or not, that’s what you are.

8. Oh, you thought the weather would be better in Trinity? Tell that to your weather-beaten Keds, which were soaked for two full days after walking through an all-day downpour last week. Trinity weather is essentially the same as Hilary, except instead of windy, cold, and rainy, it’s windy, chilly, and rainy. If not for the 20-degree temperature difference, you might not have survived to this point.

9. You will learn to walk ridiculously fast, even aggressively (see: unpredictable weather, overcrowded streets). Maybe leave that at the door when you reenter the U.S., because while that may have been acceptable in the bustling city of Oxford, it will look terribly out of place on a comparatively sleepy Williamsburg campus. Or in your house.

And finally...

10. You won’t be ready to say goodbye. You can try to prepare all you want, but the thought of being away from this place and these people doesn't seem to be registering with you yet. And maybe that's for the best, so that you can stay present for as long as you can. That's why you make the lists--so that it'll be easier to pack up and go when the time does come.