Month: September 2016

In senior year of high school, I thought of myself as a real leader. I was a head of a couple of commissions/clubs and felt like a real contributor to many others. I knew almost everyone in my school and even if I didn’t know them, their faces always seemed familiar and I was confident that they knew me. Now, I am back to square one. I feel exactly how I did four years ago. I’m a little “freshie” in such a large community. Even if I try to get involved I would never be the same contributor I once was. The only difference between now and four years ago is that I am now titled as an “honors student.”

When I hear the phrase “Baruch Honors” I immediately translate this to mean “Baruch Leader.” I feel as if I am responsible to be a representative of the top Baruch has to offer this world. I am aware that this title is a great honor but I also know that it comes with a price of great pressures. As an honors student, I am always expected to outperform the average Baruch student and will always be looked up to as the honors kid. If I don’t live up to these expectations I feel like I am letting down my high school for not being able to do much with the great education that they handed to me on a silver platter. I also would feel like I let down the Baruch admissions office by showing them that it was a mistake to give me this honor. Because of these reasons, I am determined to prove that they did not make a mistake and that I can truly become a Baruch Honors student.

Finally! High School is over. After four years of dreadful hard work and countless hours of studying, I am finally ready to move on to the next chapter in my life. I’ll be honest, Flatbush High School will definitely be missed. The challenge of keeping up with fellow honors students, the satisfaction of seeing 300 familiar faces in the halls, and, of course, the tremendous Avenue J food. Pizza, sushi, bagels… You name it, We had it. As I soon learned, though, the world is much bigger then the two block radius I once called home.

This past spring I took a trip to the infamous island of Cuba, just 90 miles south of Florida. After taking several steps outside of the airport, I realized just how astonishing Cuba really was. Immediately there was a line of hundreds of people who were waiting several hours for family and friends to arrive with simple gifts they couldn’t obtain like a small radio, a piece of furniture, or a television set.

The term “living in it’s own world” was practically invented in Cuba. Not only was I cut off from current events, but the entire country was cut off. Seriously. The Communist Cuban government Can an does censor all search engines and communications between even Cuban citizens. They block any web address that’s anti-government, anti-Cuba, or even if they simply just don’t agree with it. Growing up in New York, where I’m currently writing this for anyone to see, you can understand why it seemed so astonishing.

After seeing all this, my mind was blown. I couldn’t understand how an island, just a one hour plane ride away from miami, could be so isolated. I came to the conclusion that I needed to step out of my small life bubble and truly experience the world. I see Baruch as my perfect opportunity. Now, I get the chance to meet people from all around the world and hear all about where they’re from and what their country is like. I hope to continue to meet new people from various places and hope to one day actually travel and experience it all for myself.