Among all the activities, social gatherings, and stressful school work, one may feel deranged from reality and become detached from one’s self. I, for one, have never fully experienced this. The moment I feel most alive is when I am surrounded by people that I care for. It does become tiring at times, but I sincerely feel like I could take on the world when I am with a group of my best friends. Optimism and joy fill me when I am with my friends, and for that, I am thankful. I would not have been here if it were not for my friends.

 

 

The moment that I feel most alive is when I give and receive letters with those whom I love. Currently, our family is helping a North Korean refugee, whom I have volunteered for since I was a sixth-grade student. She lives alone in a little room, relying only on government subsidies. Since she has no family to spend time with, my younger brother and I visit her during the holidays. Once, I received the most inspirational reply for a simple New Year’s Day letter. She told me that she was extremely thankful and was touched by my letter. I believe that letters have a great power to change people. Every time I read the letters that I have collected for more than 13 years, I feel that there is a reason to live passionately and be alive.

 

 

Growing and developing myself both intellectually and emotionally is when I feel most alive. After I entered university, my life changed drastically. Before entering university, I spent my school days believing that studying is only acquiring knowledge through textbooks. As a college student, I realized that was not the case. Not only did I work hard in my two major fields, I also participated in various club activities, backpacking trips, and volunteer activities. Because I joined numerous activities, my communication skills, self-confidence, and consideration for others progressed. Through my experiences in college so far, happiness and gratification fill my heart truly, and I feel more alive as I am growing to become more mature.

 

 

I feel alive when my level of knowledge develops a step further. Last year, when I took a course on food and society, I was frustrated because I had a hard time understanding what the professor was trying to say. However, as time went by, the materials that the professor taught started to connect and make sense. I literally got goosebumps all over my body as I felt my level of knowledge expand and help me decide what I wanted to study in the future. I have decided that next semester, I will go to the United States (U.S.) as a foreign exchange student. I feel most alive when I know my ignorance and am able to use that ignorance to learn something new and contemplate it until my level of knowledge is developed.