In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different.

I have been wanting to do this post for a while.  However, I did not know how to start it, and I was unsure of what all I would say.  I still do not know what all I am going to write, but once I start writing, I will know exactly what to say.

This post is about the various people I have come to know quite well while living in Germany.  This post will also share with what I have learned from these people too.  Every person you interact with in life will leave an impression on yourself and your character; however, it is up to you to decide if its a negative thing or a positive thing.  I choose these interactions to be positive interactions that help me grow as a person.

Ashley:  Oh the fun and good memories I have with ashley.  I met ashley during international orientation week, and right away we hit it off...must be a midwestern thing.  She took me to my first bar--legally.  We bonded over various beers and the ever popular so-co.  Through the time spent here I have become closer and more comfortable around ashley.  We went to a concert and got super drunk and had a shit ton of fun. :)  One of the most important things I have learned from ashley is pride.  She is very proud of where she comes from and likes to share her fun stories.  I have never really been a real proud person, but the more time I spend with ashley the more sense of pride I have in myself and where I come from.  Having pride in myself opens up more of my personality and forces me to have more self confidence and self love.  I will be forever grateful for having ashley teach me to have pride in myself.

Alex:  Oh alex...I love alex.  Alex is kind, thoughtful, fun, and generous.  He is also very responsible.  I cannot count the amount of times alex has walked me home when I have been completely drunk.  I had the chance to see alex shit-faced last night and I was so happy that he was having fun.  I was even more happy at the fact that I would finally be able to repay all the favors he has done for me.  Alex has taught me to be more of a responsible individual.  Not responsible in a strict way, more of in a way to where I can still have fun but I don't become so drunk I fall all over the place and fall when trying to get up from the last fall.  I love that alex has taught me to be responsible...I just turned 21 roughly three months ago and normally people my age are at the bars getting shit faced with no real care and sense of self responsibility.  In general, I have seen that it takes quite a while for someone to develop their sense of self responsibility.  I am glad that I have met an awesome guy that has taught me a huge life lesson in such a short period of time!

Emily:  I don't even know where to begin with my emily journey.  We have done some stupid shit together.  We tried learning spanish in the library, we made alcoholic cupcakes, and we tend to be drunk around each other a lot.  Emily is quite like me in personality.  We both just kind of say what is on our mind and we don't give two fucks about it.  However, with emily I have learned that I need to speak up more when something is bothering me and, while I do voice my opinion quite a bit, I need to voice my opinion more around friends rather than being quiet.  If I do this, I will be much happier and my communication skills will be bomb.

Kortnie:  Oh where to start with my kor-kor.  We do a lot of dumb shit together that always seems like a good idea until creepy people show up.  We are always followed on buses and trains by some of the strangest characters.  Together kortnie and I have created some sort of a dysfunctional pseudo family.  We love each other to death, but there are times we both catch ourselves thinking about beating the other person up.  With kortnie, it is very obvious that I have learned to be more patient. :)  We are both so different and unique from each other that we have to be patient.  For instance, kortnie doesn't like germs at all.  I don't really care about germs at all.  However, I find myself being more patient around her anti-germ acts than I would with anyone else.  Another example is that I very much like to prove that I know where we are going when we are walking around and I hate it when people question my directions or my overall plan.  Kortnie has called me out on my directions, once.  But that one time I learned the value of being patient rather than becoming flustered.  We both have our little tiffs from time to time, but we cant really go more than 5 minutes without talking to each other.  Kortnie will always be considered a little part of my family, and I will forever be thankful that she has taught me to be much more patient.

Joanna & Joleen:  Joanna and Joleen are my roommates!  Joanna is from Poland and Joleen is from the Netherlands.  These two ladies have been amazing roommates and have put up with my late night drunken antics.  They both teach me about their cultures and it broadens my view and expands my cultural diversity.  I will forever be thankful that I had these two wonderful roommates!


Eduardo:  Edu.  I love having our little side chats when we smoke and I love how no matter what mood I am in, you always lift my spirits. :) We have had a lot of fun together getting drunk.  I think my favorite memory so far is when we went to a club that was having a night centered around the gay community.  We were there for less than five minutes and I managed to get one of the few straight mens phone numbers.  When I told him what had happened, he replied "WE HAVE BEEN HERE LESS THAN FIVE MINUTES."  I love this memory because that night I was able to see him have a really good time and meet some new guys.  Eduardo has taught me to be a better listener when people are talking.  I have never really been much of a good listener, but know when someone needs to vent I am more willing to communicate with them and help them through their issues by listening and responding.

Faye & Tara:  I love you two because you guys saved my life on my first day in Oldenburg.  I have learned from you two, to always help someone in need when they need it.  I used to just brush people off and be think that its not my problem to help them.  However, these two wonderful ladies were complete strangers to me and they did not have to help me.  I now realize how big of an impact just helping a person in need is.