The Official Online Newsletter of Pilipino Americans in Science and Engineering
at UC Davis
Table of Contents
What PASE Did During Summer
Vacation
Sophomore Shares Internship
Experience
A Freshman's First Time
A Freshman's First Time
By Ryan Albano
I laid down on my bed feeling very nervous. I wasn’t sure how I was going to make it through the night. I didn’t feel right. I knew something was woring. I felt unsafe and unprotected. My heart was pounding and as I twisted and turned, I began to sweat heavily. Suddenly, I felt a load from within me spill out into the open air and I quickly became more relaxed and drowsy. The next morning, I woke up feeling much better and somewhat excited. I concluded that it wasn’t bad sleeping in my new room for the first time.
The days after we got settled in were overwhelming. I met so many people and saw so many familiar faces that I’ve met during STEP. STEP stands for Student Transitional Enrichment Program. It's a program held in the summer for four weeks and it replaces the regular summer advising other students have. During STEP, we attended workshops, seminars, and classes to help us get out of the "vacation" mode and prepare us for college work. At the same time, we were able to have a lot of fun and create life-long friendships.
Since I did go to STEP, I didn’t have much to do besides wonder around and get familiar with the crowd. It was my first time riding my bicycle in heavy traffic and one time I got lucky avoiding an accident. I visited the booths in the Quad area one day and saw a mob of Filipinos all clustered up in one big group. I decided to check it out and learned that they were representing the various Filipino organizations on campus. Of course I originally planned to join a couple of these organizations, but when I talked to them and saw how friendly they were, it convinced me that I was doing the right thing. Everyone, especially PASE, was very welcoming. Already, I felt like I was part of the "pamilya."
Of course, I would be lying if I said that I didn’t party out and went to my first frat rush. And I would be lying too if I said that I haven’t overslept and fallen asleep in one of my boring lectures. These were some of the few things I went through during the first week of school. There may have been some negative events, but overall, I had a wonderful time and I certainly wouldn’t forget some of my "first."