Hello everyone! This morning I had been writing a paper for ENGL 394 – Business Writing about the processes involved in creating a gayageum, a Korean stringed instrument displayed above in the photo. Researching about the gayageum made me appreciate even more the culture my family had brought with them to the United States, and the paper became much more exciting to do!

One thing that I have come to love about USG is that as you walk around the campus, you can see the incredible amount of diversity all around. The second I walk into Building III, the array of flags is always so welcoming! The people I have come to meet here are all so incredible and have their own individual story to tell. Some have moved to the United States when they had been little, everything so new and mesmerizing to their young selves. Others have come not so long ago, still in the middle of adjusting to everything this country has to offer, but growing into their new selves here at USG with enthusiasm and excitement for the future.

For me, I had been born here, but there has always been a connection to Korea that I could never let go of. As I grew older, I began to learn more about the culture and came to adore the country. But a beautiful thing about humanity is that home is not necessarily the place of birth nor the place of ancestry. It is not a single place or even a place at all. It can be wherever your family is, wherever your loved ones are, or even wherever your heart is. Perhaps there are no blood ties to a certain place but your heart is there, feelings of nostalgia and longing always present, and that could be home for you.

Home became a mixture of the United States and Korea in my case, and I could not be more thankful. To experience two or more cultures in a lifetime, to learn languages and meet so many people is so incredible, and USG fosters that kind of community and environment for its students. As a student here, I can proudly say that USG has been so much fun for me, being able to experience such a variety of cultures and perspectives all on one campus, even within a single day. No day is the same here, and that’s something that I hope everyone here can experience at USG.