Today was a bittersweet day, as it was our very last PALETTE art class. The activity was called printmaking, where we were to paint on these plastic sheets and then transfer them onto our piece of paper, making 3 layers. My PAL Alice and I had both created very similar pieces that actually complemented each other well. We both laughed together at our art and said that they were “contemporary” pieces because they were made of mostly shapes, compared to some of the other beautiful pieces our other classmates created. Once we were done printmaking, we both walked together into the reception to look at all of our artwork from the semester and reflect back on all that we had accomplished. It was so wonderful to talk about our art and how similar our styles were to each other. Alice told me that she felt that she connected with people in my age group more because of our energy and that she did not like to do things with older people because they depressed her. I thought this was really interesting, especially because of our last class discussion we had about how individual people are and that their age has nothing to do with who someone is as a person.

I loved being a part of the PALETTE program this semester and especially having the ability to meet Alice. We connected so well and are extremely similar in our values and hobbies. We exchanged numbers to keep in touch and even have plans to hang out and do something later in June that we both enjoy. Before joining this program, I would have never thought that I could create such a wonderful relationship with someone who is from a different generation than I am. Alice and I are more alike than many people I know that are the same age as me, and I know she feels the same way. Age has no limits, and I now have no more fears of aging. My new relationship with Alice, and being a part of PALETTE is all to thank for that.