"Humanities grew up with me."

That September, I stood before the university where I would spend my entire student life for the first time. The feeling I had then remains vividly etched in my memory. I remember saying goodbye to my parents at the university gates, stepping alone into Hanoi, a glamorous city completely different from the simple, peaceful place where I was born and raised. A feeling of anxiety permeated my being, making me feel like a first-grade student. The gate of the "University of Social Sciences and Humanities" had always been my dream since I began considering my university choices. I don't know why, but that name evoked such a familiar and endearing feeling in me, and then, I strived to fulfill my dream. I became a student of the university.

That day, it wasn't raining, but it wasn't sunny either. Yet, for some reason, I felt a radiant light shining brightly with every step I took. The schoolyard, with its rows of benches under the trees, was so peaceful; each leaf still held glistening, fragile dewdrops. I suddenly realized that the school I would be attending was quite different from the one I had seen outside the gate. It wasn't glamorous or bustling, but rather quiet and serene. People often find it hard to spot the school at number 336 on Nguyen Trai Street, with its beautiful rows of mahogany trees. But once they do, they are irresistibly drawn to the schoolyard and its atmosphere. Perhaps that's why I was drawn to it.
I've only been at the university for less than a year, but for a first-year student deeply devoted to the humanities like me, every second, every minute, however brief, is incredibly precious. The September and October sun isn't as intense as May, but it's still enough to make everyone uncomfortable, and I'm no exception. Strangely, however, that heat and discomfort completely dissipates when I sit on a bench under the trees in the AB courtyard of the university. My friends often say I'm strange, but I don't care because, for me, when you love something, everything about it is beautiful and precious. For me, that's the sunshine of the humanities, and I happily embrace it. Similarly, whenever it rains, every brick, every corner of the courtyard evokes an indescribable feeling in my heart. Under the rain, the wind blows, people hurry by, but the space in the courtyard remains the same, peaceful and quiet.
Some people say that humanities students are diligent and charming but lack dynamism. That's not true. For me, the usually quiet courtyard of the humanities is incredibly lively and dynamic whenever school events take place, just as humanities students always possess an "underground" dynamism. If you say the humanities lack dynamism, then you've probably never immersed yourself in its atmosphere, never participated in any of its special events, or at least those of any of its faculties. The humanities is special to me because it can soothe my uneasy mood, bring me peace, and at the same time alleviate my sadness and boredom, leaving me feeling joyful and unusually excited. A teacher once told us that he had been attached to Hanoi for 18 years, and those 18 years were also the time he had been attached to the Faculty of Humanities. It had become his second home, and no matter what, he had fallen deeply in love with the Faculty of Humanities and with Hanoi; if he had the choice, he would not change his mind. This shows that those who don't understand or love the Faculty of Humanities will find it difficult to discover its beauty and excellence, while those who have fallen in love with the Faculty of Humanities will choose it again, even if time could turn back. This is what makes the Faculty of Humanities so precious.

For the first time, I experienced a fun and rewarding competition, making many different friends. Perhaps it's normal for most people, but for a shy girl like me, afraid of strangers, it was absolutely amazing. I wonder if the school itself changed me; I'll probably spend my entire time as a student trying to answer that, because "youth is like a sudden rain shower – even if you get wet, you still want to stand in that rain again." The new learning environment at that school helped me become more confident, helped me discover myself, and thus became an indispensable part of my life.

My love for the humanities has always been subtly growing within me!