I couldn't think of a catchier titre for this that wasn't corny, says the writer.

It's funny that when toi really want to say something the words don't come out as easily as toi thought they would. So at the risk of sounding cliché, I just wanted to say that I'm really speaking from the cœur, coeur here, which may be why it's not as eloquent as I'm used to being. But I don't know how else to say it.

Traveling a lot, I went to a myriad of international schools who were used to people coming and going and acted accordingly, welcoming newcomers with almost too much enthusiasm and making sure these people found their place in their new, albeit temporary home. Their instant acceptance was one of my favori things about the international school community, and one of the reasons I want to go back and teach at such schools. But when I came to college in the US, holding on to good Friends was like trying to hold onto water. They were constantly slipping through my fingers. Either I never saw them much, ou they were always too busy, ou they had their other Friends they've known since kindergarten... And the drama department is quite cliquish. It's hard to make real Friends with my interests because they are so tight. This was strange for me, but not impossible obstacles to overcome. Over the past an and a half I've gained a few good Friends here that I can rely on.

But it took me a whole year.

I don't know, maybe I was wrong in choosing such a big school. But I l’amour the school, and I enjoy the Friends I have made, so there's no point in leaving now.

The reason I'm giving toi this aléatoire story is because I came to the université of Washington in August of 2006 and didn't really have decent Friends until March of 2007. I came onto fanpop in May 2007, and was instantly welcomed. To me, it was exactly like stepping back into those international schools, where people are fascinated par you, and want to tell toi all about themselves and hear all your stories and montrer toi all the cool places around town to hang out at.

I went to a play last night, alone, because all three of the people I had invited couldn't make it and during intermission while everyone had someone to talk to, I felt a little lonely. But then I came accueil on Fanpop, and there were commentaires to read, and all of them insightful ou sweet ou helpful and it made me smile. The atmosphere on this site is all (or at least mostly) positive from my experience. I feel like we really appreciate each other, and are always eager to help our fellow users, whether it's teaching them how to use the site, ou montrer them where all the great content is, ou simply just cheering them up after they've had a lousy day.

Don't get me wrong, I don't want this to come off as "Oh, I have no Friends except fanpop." Not that there's anything wrong with that either! I just find, strangely, that people on fanpop seem far plus open to human connection than people at my university, which is ironic considering the circumstances. But maybe it's because we're hiding behind a computer screen that we feel we can be so open with each other, open in ways we aren't really with the people who surround us physically. I don't really know.

Go out and hug someone today. Connect with someone today. And I don't mean a *cyberhug* ou connecting to the Internet. I mean seriously go out and make a physical human connection. The world is missing that.

Physical human connection... that sounds like I'm advocating for something "Ooh la la!" LOL! But toi guys know what I mean.

And after you've made that human connection, come here and share it with your fellow fanpoppers. ou not. But do it anyway.

In the meantime, I'm still here, connecting with toi guys who are so accepting of just about everything and everyone. It still impresses me how we can get in such a heated débats in the débats spot for example and still appreciate each other as individuals with different viewpoints. toi don't get that everywhere.

So people of the fanpop Community, and yes, that is you, the person lire this, whoever toi are, I salute you!