One of the things that was so awesome about my exchange to Colorado Springs was that I could actively see myself changing as an individual and I learned a ton about myself. The first thing I learned was that I am pretty resilient and probably friendlier than I thought I was. In a semester when on campus interaction is basically non-existent, making friends was going to be a challenge. I found myself not really having any fears of being judged by others and because of that I was more open to reaching out to people and hanging out with them whether it was through mountain biking or just being friends. Maybe that was because most everyone in Colorado is really friendly or maybe because it was I just had no fears of being myself. Thats another thing, when I was out on exchange I felt like I could just be me. When you meet a ton of new people and are only going to a school for a semester, the social pressures aren't as high and I would always just try and be myself. The last major thing I learned doesn't really have to do with myself but more the others around me. I learned that I do not have to come from a similar background or have similar interests in common with someone for us to be friends, even if it is just for a day. When I went on the sandboarding trip, I knew absolutely no one and the group I was with certainly did not appear to be the type of people I typically find myself associated with at South Carolina. That being said, I had such an awesome time getting to know these people that were different from me and that really allowed me to just be myself and enjoy people's company for who they were. It opened my mind up a lot more and was a big reminder for me to be kind and open towards everyone I meet because at the end of the day we are all humans and we have more in common than we think.