Reflective Essay: My Experience At Eckerd College

All it took was three days. Three days for my view on life, the way I live, and how I view others to change. Towards the middle of my sophomore year I received an email from my guidance counselor asking me if I wanted to attend the HOBY seminar during the summer. Only one student from the high school was chosen to go, and I was honored to have been that one. HOBY stands for the Hugh O’ Brian Youth Leadership Seminar. 200-300 teens entering their junior year of high school from the Mid Florida region were invited to attend. June 12th, 2014, my mom and I headed out to Eckerd College in St. Petersburg and dropped me off at HOBY. It poured the whole way there but that didn 't stop the staff who continued to greet us the whole time. We checked in and my mom helped me up to the dorm that I stayed in. I got all situated and then headed back down to the lobby and said my goodbyes. From there all the ambassadors, which was what the participants were called, headed into the main room, hanging out waiting for everyone to get there. Of course there were ice breakers and music trying to let everyone loosen up a bit. The whole theme for Friday night was an ‘ice breaker’ theme. We were split up …show more content…
It taught me that it is alright to have flaws and to not always go with the flow. I shared my story with a group of 11 amazing people and I don 't regret it one bit. I was transparent with them and I didn 't receive one nasty look or harsh comment all weekend. We were allowed to speak our mind and we were heard for once in our lives without being judged. I am unbreakable and no one can take that from me. Of course I 've struggled since then, but what I learned at HOBY has stayed with me. I’ve gained 3 wonderful friends from that seminar that I still talk to on the daily. HOBY hasn 't just changed my life, it’s changed a bunch of ours, for the better. All it took was 3 days; 3 days to learn to love life and to love the