I was half-asleep when I heard footsteps sprinting down the hall, stopping one room to my left. For an instant, I heard nothing but dead silence. Then I heard a repetitive sloshing sound—my brother was throwing up. I waited to see if anyone would go take care of him, but when no one did, I reluctantly threw off my covers and pushed open the bathroom door. The sight of him sitting on the cold tile floor, helpless and innocent,...

After my sister was adopted from Kazakhstan, I became extremely interested in the history of her home country. Even though I'm not Kazakh, I really wanted to expand my knowledge of the country in the hopes that by educating myself, I could later teach my sister. In order to become more cognizant of Kazakhstan's culture, I subscribed to the capital's newspaper, The Astana Times. Thankfully the paper came in an English version, so I could read it during my free...

Design your own course: History through Music Course Description: In this course, students would analyze popular music from different decades in an attempt to make a connection between the songs and the cultural, political, and social events that were taking place at the same time. Often times, songs reflect the opinions and sentiments of the younger generations during the time in which the songs were written. Music is so much more personal than textbooks; it reflects how each band felt...

What Matters to Me and Why: I started writing this about the clichés: my family matters to me, my friends, my health. But those should matter to everyone. So, what matters to me, specifically? Music. Particularly 90's grunge/garage rock and classic rock. Why should I care about a genre of music that died before I was born? It's passionate, fueled by energy and emotions. It's honest. It's liberating. Music today focuses too much on relationships and drugs. 90s...

Why Georgetown? Georgetown was the first school I visited on my long college road trip. The second I stepped on campus I fell in love with the grey stone buildings and beautiful buildings overlooking the Potomac. The town of Georgetown has a huge variety of clothing stores and...