First days –new opportunities and defining moments. The day two days before my first day of senior year was a typical Saturday morning. I checked the mail and happened to find one very curious letter; it was addressed to me...from myself. I had written it at the end of eighth grade and my teacher had promised to send them out the summer before our senior year—I had completely forgotten it until that moment. The letter was rather uneventful...

One thing I have loved about my high school experience is that I have formed very close knit relationships with my fellow "Renaissance Program" students. We have all been together for many years and we all know that if one of us is struggling, the rest of us will be there to help each other along. Yale's residential colleges will allow me to travel thousands of miles away and immediately feel right at home. When I am at Yale—learning,...