I need time in nature as much as I need time to sleep. The moments I feel most whole and at peace with the world are when I'm surrounded by trees, far from the noise of busy streets. Sometimes my head gets so full of worry and fear that I can't pull myself out of my unhappy rut. But after spending just five minutes sitting alone among trees, I'm restored, relaxed, and grounded. I chose a picture of a forest for my avatar because it's my happy place. It's where I think most clearly, and it's where I'm able to be myself to the fullest extent.

Picking an avatar was a completely ridiculous journey for me.

At first, I was just searching through images I've saved or marked. As I looked through them, though, the pictures seemed too surface. Like, yes, that dog is absolutely adorable, and yeah it is completely caught in that shirt -- and I identify with being fluffy and doofus-y and tangled up something I probably got myself into. But so many people could identify with that, or at least just think something along the lines of, “Oh yes, what a cute avatar that has little to do with anything else but cuteness.” (Which is completely valid, just not what I was going for.)

So I chose my avatar because when I went to the Barnes last year I was really drawn to this Van Gough painting. I just love the combination of the semmingly bright yet dull wallpaper background as well as the post worker's sad deep eyes. His common appearence in his uniform and colorful background makes me believe that Van Gough was depicting the man's vulnerable self along with his outward self. It makes me feel like I can see parts of him overlooked by others and honestly I really enjoy learning about indivduals and their unique backgrounds that may be hidden.

Although I usually try to stay away from the expected, I decided to go ahead and make my Username Sunshine and my avatar a picture of a (glittery) sun. 

Hi everybody, I am Weilla from China :)

Every school girl has a college dream, I am no exception. Ever since I was a little girl, I started to think about my college life. Which college would I go to, What people would I meet, would I able to do whatever I want there.

I never have to hide who I am from the people I know. They understand and support me. For me, going to college is not running away from the people from my past, but to meet new people and to perfect meself.

Good evening everyone! My name is Rosa. This picture was taken in Bolivia, last fall. I am looking out with wonder and excitement. This rock was apart of a volcano that errupted many years ago.

I am grounded, but also searching and looking beyond. I think of myself more as an explorer, adventurer, maybe even wanderer, but definitely not a resident of anywhere. I do not know what I am searching for or what "home" is to me, but when I have found it, it seems to appear when I am challenged, confronted with harsh realities, or found myself confused. 

Home is not where I am from or where I was born.

My picture was taken just last week at the Tri-College Equity, Identity, and Social Justice Summer Institute. The reason I chose this picture is beacuse in this discussion group I became very open to discussiing things I had never realy given myself the chance to question. Today when Professor Dalke mentioned this class will have us exploring our identity and sharing things we might not want certain people to see, I got very excited. During Tri-Co I feel I only got to scratch the surface of my identity questions and all the other topics we discussed. I hope this ESEM will have discussions as amazing or even more amazing and eye-opening than the ones we started at Tri-Co.

I'm Hummingbird – a Serendip persona I've had for two years now, since my last 360. I picked the name in honor of my great-grandmother, who passed away the summer before Women in Walled Communities began, and for whom hummingbirds were sparks of brightness and joy in her otherwise somewhat monotonous days. The name was also appropriate for my identity as a Bryn Mawr student (you may have heard the E.B. White quotation on being married to Katherine White – a Bryn Mawr almumna).

My picture is of my hometown, Steubenville, Ohio. Although I was yearning to leave my town for new experiences in college, I have come to realize that Steubenville has shaped much of my personality. It is a unique town whose people crave to assist and to form strong relationships with one another. I hope that I can further embody my hometown's true standards, although outsiders are quick to judge those who abide in  Steubenville.