So maybe I’ve had a bit of a non-traditional perspective on what college is supposed to mean. But is it a crime to say that I didn’t set aside four years of my life to sit in poorly-ventilated lecture halls and write papers? I’m restless, albeit a little shy and independent (maybe a downfall of those who choose my field of study), and I’d much rather spend the day digging for grubs in a turf field. I’ve been up and about this semester, both in class and out, throwing ropes in trees and hiking in the pouring rain looking for mushrooms, diving into cold rivers and dragging my friends to concerts and markets and one time that hotpot place in Springfield. I saw several square miles of the world below me from the candle-stick of a bucket truck, vertigo and awe swimming in my stomach. I can safely say that overcoming a fear of heights was my biggest challenge in that particular class. In my plant pathology lab, I saw tiny clouds of bacteria bleed from infected plant tissue under a microscope, watched zoospores and nematodes swim around in all their pathogenic fervor. That’s what college should be, for me, and what it largely has been. I see a little more of this beautiful and precarious world every day. It’s my last year at UMass Amherst, and I’m going to make the most of it. Next semester, I will be a lab assistant for the professor who took us out grub-hunting, a TA for my plant pathology professor, and I am enrolled in a class to learn chainsaw techniques. After I graduate, I wish to continue to see the world, to learn with my hands, and most importantly, to have fun. Peace and love, and as always, thank you MVYouth.