Sophomore year, I wandered the halls aimlessly, taking care to remain out of the jurisdiction of the campus security guard. I pondered the possibilities that I had in front of me, and made the conscious decision to routinely skip class. An existential lens shrouded my path to maturity, painting life as happenstance with no fruition, and the thought of putting effort into this inconsequential existence was absurd and laughable. I thought my life had no potential. There was so much...

Throughout high school, I learned that it is possible to define who you are by blending into a group. Given my school's location in Southern California, it isn't hard to believe that the people I interact with come from a myriad of backgrounds that all affect what they bring to the table in interests and beliefs, but something I found that most of these people have in common is that they identify with a group, of course, defined by common...