Stephanie Stevens

• American author Henry David Thoreau once wrote, “Not until we are lost, do we begin to understand ourselves.” I never truly understood what it felt like to be lost until I left my Maryland home in a suburb just outside of Washington, D.C. and arrived on campus at the University of Georgia. Surrounded by new places and faces, I was eager to embark on my freshman year of college and explore all that the small town of Athens had to offer. Although leaving home for the first time was challenging, the experience has been tremendously rewarding and has allowed me to learn a great deal about myself. Many view college as an opportunity to reinvent themselves, but for me, it has been an opportunity to discover myself.
• The University of Georgia provided me with a clean slate. I was no longer surrounded by the warm familiarity of my friends and family, which meant that it was time to make new friends and new memories. My first year at UGA has been full of new experiences, such as camping at Beaver Creek with the Outdoor Adventure club, and dancing at Dance Marathon with UGA Miracle. However, most importantly, my freshman year at UGA challenged me to grow as a person. While college was initially a tough transition, adapting to college life has allowed me to become an independent and open-minded person.

The picture shown on this page is a snapshot of me riding an elephant in Chiang Mai, Thailand. I visited Thailand during the summer of 2012 for 16 days. My elephant ride through the forest was one of the most memorable parts of my trip. More pictures from my trip can be seen in the video montage displayed in my Wildcard.