I can't believe a semester has already passed; everything goes by so fast here. 

   It's a great time for break. Although I'm pumped to learn more things, I can really use a break to look back to the start of the school year and compare what I expected to what I end up in right now. 

   I have had an amazing time talking to my advisor yesterday night, and I think he is really happy with what I've been doing this entire time. That said, I always remain in top of the class, and I am active in sports, and I am joining more clubs and trying out more stuff. 

   But at the same time I miss China terribly. Don't get me wrong; it's different from being homesick. I just miss the country, the language, the custom, and the food. And I miss my friends there too. I've heard from them less and less frequently, because they are all busy preparing for the test, though a large percentage of my previous class have already been accepted by Tsinghua and Peking University. I still write emails to my best friend in China, and I am happy to know that everything goes well in my old school and in China. Nothing too much to be concerned about. But I still miss them very very much, and there is no way to talk about it with my best friends here at Hotchkiss. Except for Brian, the rest of them are all Americans. Brian doesn't really count as an international student, because he grew up in Canada and went to school in America. He barely speaks Korean, and he doesn't really have that many friends back home. It is impossible to explain them how much I miss my own country, although four months ago I thought my identity would be a burden. Now I am so very proud of the fact that I am Chinese, and I want everybody to know that. 

   I talked to my advisor about this, and he is very happy about it, because one of his major concerns before school started was that I would gradually lose my sense of nationality, being in an environment that's diverse but largely American. I always enjoy talking to my advisor. He is one of the few people in this school who is pretty open about everything and who truly understands the position of international students. 

   I would really want to stay at Hotchkiss a little bit longer, though I'm very ready for the winter break. I will miss my friends and my teachers so terribly during holiday.