Dear freshman year Katie, I’ve already forgotten many small details of beginning Duke during a global pandemic. But reading about your thoughts on your first month of college brings everything back. I remember relishing every in-person class like it was a field trip and feeling sweat rolling down my back as I debated when to “unmute” myself on Zoom classes — those were interesting times. … Continue reading letters to myself
June 2012 The field behind the Warren library is quiet on 364 days out of the year, but tonight the lawn has been transformed into a wonderland of thrilling rides, carnival games, and dazzling rainbow lights. Middle schoolers hurl darts at balloons, young parents hoist grinning toddlers, and teenagers come just “for the vibes” to eat nostalgic fried Oreos. Thick barbecue smoke entwines with chatter … Continue reading friendship
It’s Sunday morning, and Family Weekend is over. I spent two and a half loaded days with my parents cheering for the Duke basketball team, performing my first live band concert since February 2020, and taking pictures. Lots of them. Now I stand by the curb and watch as my parents drive out of my dorm parking lot to head home, my heart hollow. Take … Continue reading college is not for the nosy introvert
I thought high school would last forever. The girl who was swept along by a mob of tall scary teenagers on her first day of freshman year couldn’t comprehend the breadth of four years in that huge unfamiliar place. Yet, the four years zipped by at light speed and she graduated. I graduated. In hindsight, high school felt like a coloring book. The outlined shapes … Continue reading (Young) Adult Reckoning
November 24, 2020 My family and I haul my belongings from the car into the house. When we’re done, a haphazard mound of duffels and totes is piled along one wall of the kitchen. We let out a collective sigh of weariness and relief. I am finally home after three months, and we are all safely back together as one unit. Unpacking can wait until … Continue reading First Time Home
One of Duke’s supplementary essays asked me to share an experience of mine related to a community I belonged to. Sixteen year old me presented herself as a lofty, wannabe poet; I touted myself as being an “explorer and a seamstress.” I wrote (and I both smile and cringe as I read this now), “Scouring all that my school has to offer allows me to … Continue reading Finding Community
Fifth weekend Continue reading College // First Month
Friends are great! Continue reading End of an Era
In the distant past when the coronavirus did not exist, I would always be busy. I’d be a summer camp counselor chasing after sweaty kids in a park, wood chips stabbing the soles of my feet. I’d be on a plane, juggling my stack of books with the small cup of complementary water on the tiny tray table while the recycled cabin air dried my … Continue reading Summer in Quarantine
Katie Tan 