Walking out of the 1st exit of Xinpu Station, I could see the evening twilight covering the City of Banqiao. In front of me was the Xinpu Traditional Market.
I picked a seat near that familiar food stand and sat down. Moments later, my family and the nearby shop owners joined me around the table. The grownups chatted about the day, while I worked on my homework trying not to be distracted by my siblings’ horseplay.
When the adults stopped talking, it was my time to share anything, from my test scores to my romantic interests. Sometimes I would talk about my recent projects and plans, and they would offer me some advice.
Throughout the years, these questions about my projects turned from “How about this Lego sumo-bot?” to “How about this educational platform’s prototype?” to, one day:
“What about studying abroad?”
This question, my father answered calmly, with a phrase so simple that I felt confused.
“Go out, do whatever you want. Just remember that if you fail, there’s always a spot for you here, in our evening group.”
Okay.
This philosophy of “just go and do it,” I will bring with me to Duke. I will continue to take advantage of the opportunities before me as well as to create new ones for myself, because in a way, I have known that if I fall too far, or too hard, there is always my group of people that will be there to catch me.