Summer passed by in a breeze and before I knew it, I was on the road back to Ithaca.

My family didn’t come with me this time,

but that doesn’t mean I was alone.

Road trip with Grace and Angie

One year ago, I was nervous whether I’d be able to find people I could call my friends.

Fast forward one year, and there were people that made me excited to go back to Ithaca again.

Reunited.

Some of my friends changed a lot…

Eric gets a dashing new haircut

While others, more or less, stayed the same.

Derek always forgets his umbrella

Now that I was a sophomore, things needed to change.

I wasn’t a small, little freshman anymore.

I decided it was time for some discipline in my life,

so I started waking up earlier every day to get breakfast before going to class.

Elisabeth always said she’d join me but she usually didn’t wake up in time,

which meant she had to take her breakfast to go.

“Elisabeth… Do you… want a fork?”

I made sure to sleep before 2 every night, went vegetarian for a month, and I even started exercising pretty consistently too.

Shara and I go on our first (and last) run of the year

But if there was one thing I was most excited for about sophomore year, it was meeting the new freshmen.

My Christian fellowship did a lot of events to reach out to new students and for one of them, we gave out free ice pops.

“Melody! The ice pops are for the freshmen…”

As I met a lot of different freshmen, I couldn’t help but wonder who’d be the ones that’d stay.

Would they be cool?

And hopefully friendly?

Melody is forgiven.

Soon enough, a lot of freshmen started to roll in and some of them were super caring.

Ben and other freshmen bake more than enough pie to share

Elaine makes sure Ben doesn’t get wet

While others, not so much.

Joanna and Bella need an Elaine, not a Jonah

A lot of them were really affectionate.

Both emotionally…

Amy offers Aleena a helping hand

and physically.

“Jaden, my arm is falling asleep.”

Jaden just wants a hug

Some were just… interesting.

I think Max really likes this cake

And sometime early on, I got really close to this freshman named Jonah.

Jonah and Me.

Every time we had dinner together, we’d sit there for hours talking about life, relationships, our futures, and all our hidden secrets.

Our conversations were usually cut short because the dining hall was closing.

I don’t really remember how we got close, but I think it was our shared intellectual curiosity that drew us closer.

A book for intellects

If you ever talk to Jonah, you’ll quickly find out he’s a bit peculiar.

He doesn’t really eat sugar and his body’s a little… stiff.

So I made sure he had some sugar here and there.

Jonah doesn’t want to admit the chocolate bar is good

And I forced him to wiggle his body around from time to time.

“Does your body… move?”

—

As I was forming all these new friendships, I realized that I really wanted to deepen the friendships I made last year too.

So I tried my best to find that balance.

16 consecutive rounds of Nerts really deepens friendships

I was thankful for the friends that remained consistent.

Simon is persistent. I mean consistent.

The friends that showed their care.

Angie and Grace help me hem my pants

And the friends that just made everything comfortable and fun.

Touching John Harvard’s foot is good luck (÷ 6)

—

I learned a lot freshman year and sophomore year was no different.

I learned some useful life skills…

Crafting the perfect lighting for Daniel and Cherrie

And also just useful things about life.

“Derek. Derek. What… is this?”

And I learned that college is so freakin’ spontaneous.

Whenever I was busy and needed to study, there was always some hangout or event that popped up out of nowhere.

Of course I still studied when I really had to, but it didn’t help when Elisabeth kept telling me,

This mentality didn’t always justify the best decisions, but it’s only been a couple months down the road, and the happy memories are all I remember.

The water was ICY cold

It was the spontaneous decisions that led to the most memorable trips,

Stargazing on a cloudy night

To the most intimate moments,

Eric and Jonah engage in a passionate struggle

And to some of the best meals I’ve had in Ithaca.

I don’t think Aleena likes what she ordered

—

Sophomore year was also a time of a lot of change.

It was a time where enemies became lovers,

Jonah and Bella reassure me that they’re just friends

A time where coincidence led to new relationships,

Next door neighbor Gloria invites us over for hot pot

And also a time where unexpected friendships led to some really great conversations.

Good food, better people.

But even with all these changes, a lot of things also stayed the same.

Ithaca was still just as beautiful.

My view on the walk back home from class

Dancing together with the guys of my fellowship was just as fun.

Boys Generation is b-b-back

And I guess some people don’t really change.

Rain or Shine, Winter or Summer, Grace Chen loves her birks

I also thought that being a sophomore meant that the upperclassmen would stop spoiling me.

But the care stayed the same too.

The Highlands girls are great at cooking
(in no particular order)

—

Over winter break, a bunch of people in my fellowship traveled to a conference together and I was in a hotel room with a bunch of senior guys.

That’s when it really hit me that they’d be leaving me in a couple months.

So I made sure to cherish every moment I had with them.

Bed for five?

We laughed and giggled and talked all night,

But I guess some people weren’t having as much fun as us.

We're sorry, Tiffany.

Tiffany and Simon the next morning

Time flew by a little quicker than I wanted, and it was already time to say goodbye.

There were some tears, and a lot of hugs.

A lot of these seniors were the first to welcome me into Cornell, and now for the first time,

I had to imagine a Cornell without them.

Dazzling David

I think what saddens me the most is the fact that I’ll never be able to see them as consistently and conveniently as I did for the past two years.

A good conversation was always just a meal away,

But the meals we once had together seem just a little further away now.

Lunch tomorrow?

I wish I spent more time with each one of them.

And I wish they could stay a little longer.

But it gives me comfort knowing that a new group of people will get to experience the same love and care they showed me.

Mark Pon Fan Club

—

Just a couple of weeks ago, my brother graduated from college.

I still remember when my family dropped him off at Berkeley for his freshman year and how I cried on the drive back home.

In the busyness of my day to day, each moment feels so slow.

But looking back, every one of those moments have come together to define exactly half of my college experience.

And it’s all going by too fast.

Rising Juniors

My Dad always told me that there’s nothing you really have to do in life.

He said as long as I work hard while enjoying every moment, I’ll find myself closer to the things I want to do and the direction I want to go.

And I think I’m slowly understanding what he means.

Academically, sophomore year was my toughest.

But sophomore year was also a time where I found more direction in my life.

In the midst of developing and deepening friendships, grinding out psets and projects, and trying new and uncomfortable things, I’ve been working hard.

But I’ve also been enjoying every moment.

And through my failures and successes, I’m slowly realizing what I want to do in my life.

I’m getting closer to the things I want to do.

A good reminder

Sophomore year definitely wasn’t easy.

There were times where I felt overwhelmed by the pace of everything around me, and there were friends that I lost in the midst of that pace.

But through it all, I’ve learned a lot.

I’ve learned a lot about the people around me, and most importantly,

I’ve learned a lot about myself.

I’m realizing more and more that I’m still so far from the person I want to be.

In just a few months, I’ll be back to start my junior year of college.

The past two years really changed me a lot, and I’m curious to see how my thoughts and emotions will continue to change.

I’m curious to know what experiences and memories will come to define the highs and lows of my junior year.

And as I reflect on the past year and look ahead to what’s coming,

I just can’t wait to go back.

Spring in Ithaca

- James Kim