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My first year at MGA has been the least to say interesting. I made friends and shared laughs with people I've never met before in my entire life. I never knew Virginia was so big. I always just thought about my little dinky town, and then I get here and there are like 400-500 kids here. All of the diversity has really opened my eyes to a lot of things. Having all these different groups of people brings all differnent viewpoints to everything that passes through every commitee and every floor session which is critical to making a compromise possible. If i had any advice for the upcoming people at MGA it would deffinetly be first and foremost, make sure your door is shut before you start changing, girls-bring band-aids, and then make the most of every possible second of this experience. It may only be three days, and you may be on the go 24/7 and miss a meal or two, but it is so worth it. The friends and memories made, all the laughs and smiles shared, and all the stupid and lame pictures taken, DO NOT EVER forget them. Point-blank, this experience is a chance to grow and step out of your shell. Actually pay attention, the things that everyone is talking about are really relevant and can help later on when you can (or if you're 18) vote, or take a chance and say, "Hi." to the kid sitting next to you, who knows, that could turn into a friendship for the ages. MGA is a wonderful experience and even though I'ma Senior in high school and this is my first time here, if I had the opportunity to come back next year, there would not be anything stopping me.

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