When I was younger, my friends and I would play soccer and hang out at a community jungle gym. Over the years, the park rotted away and gathered graffiti, but we would still keep coming back. It was there where I learned about life. I got the chance to form my own opinions away from my parents about religion, politics, science, and ethics. Most often, it was just three of us, but sometimes more. At the beginning of it all, there was a christian, muslim, and agnostic, but over time, we came to a consensus on the matter. I felt like it was the place dreams were discovered and societal issues were solved. It was the place I wanted to fool around with with my first love. It was the place where I fought some people who would remain enemies and some who would become friends. This was the community center for our generation then.

Now, while I don't see the friends as frequently as I wish because of different places of enrollment for college, I have made other friends with the floor of my residence hall. Our third place is the study room late at night or in each others' rooms.