We all have objects that evoke particular memories from past experiences in our lives. Today, we each brought an object that held a memory and we exchanged them with our PALs. Without looking at the other person’s object, we were instructed to paint a memory or a feeling that we thought of, based on our PALs object. This activity opened a lot of opportunies for conversation and bonding with our PALs. My PAL, Edith, brought a necklace that she got at her retirement party.  When I felt the necklace, my first thought was of my friends and family. Whenever I’ve gotten necklaces, they have been as gifts from loved ones. I painted a picture of a summer sunset at Stinson Beach, where I spent one of my last days in California before leaving for Virginia. The object I brought for Edith was a toy horse. The memory that it evoked for her was a time where she use to walk her dog and drive in the 2nd car she had ever owned. Overall, we had a great time sharing and bonding over our memories with the rest of the class. Our background experiences are what shaped the person we are today and oftentimes we get so caught up with our day to day lives that we forget about the little memories in our past that brought us joy. Today’s event allowed us to take some time to reminisce about the small moments in our past and share it with our new friends.

Janice Chan, first year Dentistry student