The Welch Diaries: Mal Edition

Hey everyone!

I'm finally back home! I don't have any huge plans for the rest of the summer, and I can't even begin to tell you how great that feels. I have a couple of standardized tests to study for and college applications to start, but for now, I'm free. That feeling is indescribably amazing.

What's even better is that I can finally tell you where I was for the first part of the summer! I was selected to be in a program called Welch Summer Scholars. It's basically a research program where high schoolers get put into real chemistry labs and learn to research about a topic they're assigned to by a professor. We live on campus with roommates (other Welchies) and we get to taste the first sweet sip of independence. It was a fabulous experience, hands down, and I learned so many things during it.

My dorm mate Annie wrote this amazing blog post about her experience at Welch (check it out here), and I decided I would do my own take on her post. Without further ado, let's begin!

5 Things I Learned at Welch

1. If you want a fun experience, you need to get out of your room. I honestly can't stress this enough. On the first day we arrived at Welch, life was a little awkward. I introduced myself to all of the girls that I was living with and then we kind of separated into our own dorms to do our own thing (unpack, etc.). It wasn't until Annie suggested that we go out and be social that we ventured out of our dorm (and promptly got lost). I'm not going to lie, that first walk was pretty awkward. We were all from different cities and it was a little hard to find common ground. The conversation was a ta forced at points. But, it was the first step. We ended up judging the Welch guys (lol) because they seemed super unfriendly and pretty dorky. It's mean to do that, I know, but at the end of the day, we bonded a little over it. After we got back to our dorm and ordered pizza, I felt a little better about where this whole summer was heading.
Moral of the story: In order to make friends, you can't isolate yourself.

2. The guys are cooler than you think, so DON'T judge. The guys at our Welch camp were incredibly chill. For the first two days, we made no attempt to get to know them because a) we though they rejected our initial hello's and b) they seemed a little goofy. Then, on day 3, we all went to a restaurant for dinner and when we came back, we watched Mean Girls together. I can say with confidence that it was at that moment that I decided I loved Welch. All of us, the girls and the guys, became really, really close. They were like my brothers. My annoying, irritating, I-want-to-punch-you-right-now-so-I'm-going-to brothers. One of the guys started this thing where he would say 'got heem' to everything, and now I do too. We did get into a series of fights over inconspicuous things (that was what this post was about), but we made up. And I'm thankful that everything ended up okay in the end.
Moral of the story: Just because someone thinks Hawaiian shirts are stylish does not make them a dork. He might be a very interesting human. Talk to him.

3. If your professor criticizes you, don't take it personally. I'm not going to tell you which professor I worked with, but I will tell you this: don't take anything personally. A really important part of Welch is that you get to interact with real college professors who don't take crap. Even if you feel like you're trying 100% in the lab or on your paper, you can always aim for 110% (and they will probably tell you that). At times, you might feel like you are a failure because you've done something really dumb, like mix up buffers or accidentally put the wrong thing in the fridge. You need to forgive yourself and move on. If you're taking criticism from someone else and you have that little voice in your head saying 'gosh, you're so dumb. how could you even do that?', you're not going to internalize what the other person is saying. Try to see the message through the delivery. At the end of the day, your professor wants nothing but the best for you.
Moral of the story: If someone gives you constructive criticism, it's because they believe in you.

4. You can't kill a roach by throwing bleach on it. I hate roaches so so so much. To me, they are disgusting, creepy, freaky little bugs that show up everywhere unannounced. We ended up having a lot of roaches in our dorm and a lot of the time, we had to deal with them ourselves. In Annie's post, you can read where she talked about the whole roach-in-her-dorm incident. Although it sounds funny, it was super scary at the time. I, for one, was freaking out, but I was trying to give her some moral support, which meant that I was cowering behind her. To this day, I still can't kill roaches, and I don't think that's ever going to change. But, I can say with confidence that one day I may be able to put a cup on a roach. Maybe.
Moral of the story: Your worst fears can be conquered if you're exposed to them enough.

5. Don't be intimidated by your fellow Welchies. In my group, we had 8 kids. There were people with perfect scores on standardized testing, high ranks, all stars in chemistry. When I first walked in, I wasn't just intimidated. I was mortified that all these smarties would think I was an idiot. This was kind of exacerbated when I mixed up sigma and pi bonds during our second meeting. But, as I got to know these people, I began to realize that they shared my fears. There are aspects to our personality that can intimidate others and we don't even realize that. Quit thinking that you are the odd one out and embrace the fact that you are smart and capable in your own way that is different from everyone else.
Moral of the story: Never feel inferior or incapable. If you are, you wouldn't have gotten in in the first place.

Our chaperone and the other program coordinators told us that we're the closest a Welch group has ever gotten. I don't doubt it. We became a family. Even though there were times where I just wanted to pack up and come home, I'm glad I stayed. I love all of my Welch G's and I'm thankful that they made my experience so awesome.

My biggest lesson? Nothing beats grilled cheese and queso.

See you in my next post!

Mal