I think my（3）3started when I was at Palomar College. At first, I just wanted to get my（4）4and be left alone. I thought I was smarter than everyone else, so I hardly ever（5）5to anyone in my classes. By the end of my first semester, I was really（6）6. It seemed as if everyone but me had made friends and was having fun. So I tried a(n) （7）7. I started asking people around me what they were doing, and if they were having trouble I（8）8to help. That was really a big（9）9for me. By the end of the year, I had several new friends, and two of（10）10are still my best friends today.
A bigger cause of my new（11）11, however, came when I took a part-time job at a Vista Nursing Home. One old lady there who had Alzheimer's disease became my（12）12. Every time I came into her room, she was so（13）13because she thought I was her daughter. Her real daughter never（14）14her, so I took her place. She let me（15）15that making others feel good makes me feel good, too. When she died, I was（16）16, but I was very grateful to her.
I think I am a much（17）17person today than I used to be, and I hope I will not（18）18these experiences. They have（19）19me to care about other people more than about myself. I（20）20who I am today, and I could not say that a few years ago.
