Just one year

I know I had been such a lazy sloth for the past couple of months. I am supposed to be blogging at least once a month but because I was too busy with my social life HA!

So, one year has passed in a blink of an eye. I felt that it was just yesterday when I first arrived in LA. I remembered having only one Indo friend at school (worse thing is, she is not even in the same major as I am). I met her during the first day in the orientation (major thanks to a teacher who reunited me and her).

My college life was kind of miserable at first. I went to school by bus, which I had never done in my life for the past 18 years. I walked for one block every single day to the bus stop and waited around fifteen to thirty minutes for it. I knew it wasted my time a lot. Not to mention that the bus had a very unorganized schedule and that I often encountered weird people throughout my history of "going to college by bus". Anyway, it wasn't until the "SMC-Indo" gathering lunch did I make friends with more people. If you know me, I was super shy with new people (but hopefully I am not anymore). I was lucky I had some friends who had been in my college for at least one semester, so they kind of teach me how to do things such as using the printer at the study lounge, getting discounts when buying food in the cafeteria with my student id card (thanks to the person who taught me this hahaha) and so on.

Moving on, these past few months had been the hardest for me. My uncle from my mother's side passed away exactly one month before my birthday. I really really broke my heart to know that. I did not expect him to leave us this soon. I was lucky to get to see his face for the last time during Chinese New Year. Then, I had my birthday in April. My first birthday without my family members except my sister. Although my friends did come to surprise me, but deep inside, the presence of our family was the most important thing, right?

Two- three weeks after my birthday, my parents came to LA for my sister's graduation. The second morning they were here, I received a message from my younger sister in Medan that our dog had went missing. After reading that message, I felt like my whole world was falling apart. I was not exaggerating but I literally felt my heart was like a crumpled paper. I was crying inside every single night wondering what was my dog doing out there. Was he beaten by other people? or was he out there sitting under the pouring rain, forgetting the way home? Anyway, I believed I had moved on since I knew the best thing to do was to let him go. But, I will never forget the memories and joy he'd given to this family for the past 6 years.