Author Archives: julia.leung

Just kidding. Bad things don’t really come in threes. At least, not that I believe.

Firstly, I had no expectations for Baruch mainly because it was not my top choice. I honestly felt like I was going back to high school again. I was, and still am, unimpressed with Baruch. I know that sounds sort of apathetic and…mean but I think I would be much happier somewhere else.

My first semester has its highs and lows. I’m definitely a procrastinator. I think it’s one of my favorite hobbies. I did meet a lot of new and interesting people and I’m glad to have met them. I’m not doing so well in math (then again, I never had) but I’m doing alright in my other studies. Hopefully with a little extra studying, I’ll be able to pull off a better GPA than I think I have right now.

Honestly, I don’t think I would have done anything differently. I believe everything happens for a reason, so I think I’d probably stick to the choices and mistakes I made this semester. It’ll lead me somewhere where I’m bound to end up. But, if I had to choose, I think I would have switched out to a different math class and spoken to some more people that I would’ve liked to know.

Since I’ve come to Baruch, I’ve turned into more of a wanderlust. I find myself constantly daydreaming of moving and exploring different cities, states, and even countries. Being surrounded by city inhabitants who seek to thrive in a standard 9-to-5 cubicle job solidified my opinion that I’m not meant to be here. It also made me realize that however brave I am, I’m still not brave enough to stand up to my parents and tell them that this isn’t what I want to do for the rest of my life.

I definitely strayed from my original monologue:

To be honest, I held off writing this little speech for the longest time. I wasn’t sure of how to explain to everyone who I am when, in reality, I still haven’t figured that out for myself yet. We had a bunch of prompts for our free writes for these past few weeks. With each and every one of those, I had trouble coming up with a definitive answer for.

For starters, I can provide you with my basic information. My name’s Julia Leung. I’m eighteen years old. I live in Queens, New York, and I have for all my life. I have two younger brothers who enjoy picking on me. But even though I told you all those facts, there wasn’t anything substantial to them.

One thing that I can say about college so far is that it’s definitely not too different from my high school. The student body is large, so I feel at home in the midst of all these people, even though it’s harder to make friends. I wasn’t too happy about going to Baruch and I’m still not. It’s a great school but I have no interest in business. The only reason I feel obliged to be here is because of my parents. I understand that they want me to have a financially stable life, but I don’t believe that the only way to make money is to enter the business field. In retrospect, though, I honestly have no idea what I want to study; I’m incredibly indecisive.

I’m an avid food enthusiast and I pretty much eat anything. I have a short attention span. I’m addicted to the internet. I’m really bad at math, which is one of the reasons I shouldn’t be here. I’m incredibly afraid of pigeons and squirrels. But mostly pigeons. I start panicking when they get too close to me. Unfortunately, this proves to be an obstacle, especially since Baruch is surrounded by them. I’m still afraid of the dark.

I reflect back on these ‘likes and dislikes’, I feel that they’re the only things that are constant in my life right now. I know I said that Baruch isn’t too different from my high school, but there are some major differences. I was incredibly involved back in high school, being on the track team and the yearbook committee. And I realized in June, after the yearbooks were distributed and I had to announce the new captain that would take my place on the track team, things were changing. I understand that change is inevitable, but I was not prepared for how quickly one academic year had passed by. And I certainly wasn’t prepared for all of my friends packing up their belongings and going away for college.

But change is good. Change is something that’s going to happen whether you like it or not, and the only thing left to do is to go with the flow. Life is way too short for you to worry about every little thing. I believe that everything happens for a reason, and it’ll lead you to greater things in the long run. And, hopefully, as I begin my journey here at Baruch, I’ll be able to find some of the answers to these questions in the long run.

And I chose this photo, and doodled all over it, to represent me because I feel like I’m always going to be a kid at heart with an overactive imagination no matter how old I am. It’s bright and colorful and sort of obnoxious – everything that I believe myself to be.

My name is Julia Leung, I just recently turned eighteen on September 13, and I live in Queens, New York. These are just substantial facts that do not define me as a person. I am an entity of confusion, doubts, hopes, and dreams. I thought I knew who I was back four years ago, as I began my freshman year in high school. But since then, I had realized that I was not exactly who I thought I was. With the loss of my track team captainship, my position on my high school yearbook committee, my boyfriend, and close friends upon graduation, I find myself asking: who am I? A question that I hope to find answers to in four years’ time, when I graduate from college.

As I enter my freshman year at Baruch College, I find myself worrying about the top three things that plague almost every other freshman students’ mind: grade point average, finding a place for myself in a commuter school, and my future. It is a fresh, clean slate for all of us – a new chance to make amends to past grades and mistakes. It is something so pristine that I hope that I would not ruin, as many would wish not to. Finding my own place in this vast commuter school is another worry on my list. I am a sociable person, but I feel that many of the friends that I make here will be nothing more than passerbys that I wave hello and goodbye to in the hallways. I long for a more deeper and committed level of friendship to keep past the length of college. My future is another thought that often consumes my mind. I’m worried that, perhaps, business is not the right career track for me. I find myself conflicted between listening to my parents and following their foolproof plan to a financially secure life and between following my own passions in a area of study completely opposite of business.

Baruch seems to be not much different than my high school in the regards that I am still commuting and in a large student body, but the atmosphere seems to be a welcomed change. The students seem to be more open and friendly and the air is always tinged with an electricity of busyness. There are also options that were inconceivable in my high school – such as the opportunity to study abroad, something that has been on my mind constantly and, hopefully, something that I can endeavor in my sophomore year. This first year of college is one of excitement and a beginning of a journey that won’t be completed for a while. The change that I anticipate for myself would be mostly introspective – maturing mentally and emotionally. This first year will allow me to embark on a personal revelation of what I want for my future, how to accomplish these goals, and, also, to find out, for myself, what sort of person I hope to become to be.