been away to michigan for the past four days. i had a really good time and i'm glad i went. it gave me a chance to get to know diah, shakir, tooba and usman better. and also to chill, relax and forget about school for a while. i feel it's almost a pity i didn't meet this guys earlier and wouldn't be with them for much longer, coz they are all wonderful people and there's so much i can learn from them. right now, nida and i are the youngest, everyone else will be leaving next year. shakir has already finished his grad study and he hangs around only because usman and amir are still here. amir, diah and usman are finishing their second degree next year. afsan's graduating next year and so will huma if she finishes early. i'll miss them terribly when they are all gone and i fear that i'll have to start the process of getting to know people and making friends all over again. i guess this is the way life is but it can be really hard trying to find friends whom i can identify with and feel comfortable being myself around, especially here. i like being spoilt by everyone. since i'm younger than them, they treat me like they would their own sister yet at the same time they acknowledge that i'm capable of being mature and show appreciation for my thoughts and feelings. these people have encouraged me in the past year to feel comfortable speaking my own thoughts and representing others in the society. they've changed the way i feel about myself and the way i look to others. my nose has started to bleed again and tooba made me put petroleum jelly in my nose to stop the bleeding. it's pretty gross, but it helped. back at tufts means back to reality. it's time to catch up with work but first, sleep...