My childhood was a splatter of memories made up of lazing on the warm sand under the coconut trees of my hometown- Anjrale, a tiny town on the coastal strip of Maharashtra, India. When I was 10 years old, my parents and I bid the waves goodbye to settle in Pune so that I could have better schooling opportunities. Coincidentally, I happened upon such an opportunity in 8th grade, while I was cycling in the Mulshi valley one Saturday and managed to get hopelessly lost; only to stumble across the gate to the Mahindra United World College of India.
Fast forward two years and I was living my dream high school life surrounded by artists, thinkers and students from all over the globe. From a week-long trip to Dharamshala which was spent wandering the beautiful hills and learning of Tibet’s history through the people that lived it, to volunteering at an animal shelter and cuddling baby donkeys, MUWCI allowed me to understand through empathizing, discussing and engaging. Academic life was rigorous and demanding yet it granted me autonomy to explore the subjects and concepts of my interest. Hence, I developed a deep fascination for Philosophy and Hindi Literature. However, I have to confess that my UWC experience is truly made up of the conversations, sunrises, dance offs, adventures and recipes shared outside the classroom. And that’s what makes it all the more indescribable.
One of the main reasons I was drawn to Lewis and Clark was because of its location and campus which suit my constant need to be immersed in or surrounded by nature. Owing to my childhood, I’m a huge outdoors enthusiast and the college outdoors program instantly had me hooked. A small college and community with close proximity to the city is my ideal “best of both worlds” setting. Besides, after learning of L&C’s wide acceptance of non-traditional student beliefs I wanted to see a balance between several aspects of learning and education- such as sustainable lifestyles or study abroad programs along with the focus on course work and academia for myself.
Coming to L&C, I hope to get over my indecisiveness and find an academic interest that I can stick to for the long run. While I am clueless about a plausible career path, my immediate goals definitely include picking one course to study in depth or crafting a concentration that lets me embody the famed “pioneer” spirit.