Spring break! For me, it's a marker that I have actually been at this university for at least half a semester. I started as a Spring Connect student, and it's really been great. It means getting used to how things work around here, the places to eat, nearest stores, best study areas, and finding my way around the three-floor gym and rec center. I've met amazing people and interacted with many others, so now I don't regret branching out and leaving what I knew.

Spring break also means going back home. It means a week of my mom and grandmas cooking and all my noisy siblings. It means convincing my dad to take me to go see Captain Marvel (which really won't take much, he's a huge nerd).

A couple a weeks ago I sat down in my calculus class and looked around the rows and saw a very small amount of people like me. By that, I mean I saw a very small amount of Latinos. I walk into my English class and I am the only one who's Latino. I walk into other places and there's such a small amount that I started tearing up. My parents are immigrants: my dad has a high school GED and my mom barely finished first grade. My dad and I had a conversation in which he said, "Everything is in your favor, use it", and he's right.

Did I think I'd end up at a university? I hoped because for many people it's not a possibility. I am grateful. Did I think I'd end up at this school? No, it was an unexpected twist.

I have so much to do and I'll probably use spring break to catch up with things I am behind on, but I am so very grateful. I'm grateful for the new hearts and opportunities. At the beginning of this year, nothing was going the way I wanted. I got horrible bangs two weeks before starting school. My nails which I'd just gotten done were chipped and I got sick. It's been three months now, the nails are gone, my hair grew out, and I'm not coughing up a lung anymore.

Things will always fall into place. Just remember to breath and be thankful. Use spring break wisely.