Hannah M. Kitslaar ACTR Russia Summer 2016 English Language Application Essay I met Russian through a series of fortunate events which began on the car ride to college orientation in August 2013. It was one of fourteen critical languages from which I could have chosen, and in February 2014 I knew it had been the right one after the Russian annexation of Crimea changed the way the world viewed Eastern Europe and Russia's influence on post-Soviet states. Ignorant to the fact that I would soon declare this language as the focal point of my degree, it was not until the first day of class that I realized just how much I did not know about Russian language and culture. I vaguely remembered hearing the Russian word for grandmother tossed around, but in retrospect, and much to the dismay of every Russian language instructor I have had, we had been pronouncing it embarrassingly wrong. I will forever and fondly remember the thirty minutes we spent early in the semester branding our brains by chanting "BA-boosh-ka, BA-boosh-ka." Over the next five semesters I developed a love-hate relationship with the language as my classmates and I struggled to memorize tables of case endings, and celebrated when we managed to decline even small words correctly. Whatever confidence we had in approaching what we assumed must have been a working proficiency of the Russian language after two semesters was quickly crushed when we began to watch authentic Russian films. It was then that I questioned if I would ever feel ready to make the investment of traveling to Russia and interacting with native Russians who do not think twice about declension and conjugation. I realized, however, that the hesitation that often holds me back in our classroom would be my downfall if I let it take control of me in Russia. In accepting the fact that error is inevitable and that my friends in Russia will understand, even if it takes a few tries, I will allow myself the opportunity to learn from my mistakes in the best environment to do so: among native Russian speakers who likely feel the same way about their English skills. A professor of Russian politics once shared with our class that those who study France love France, while those who study Russia hate Russia. While I agree in the sense that I will never be able to fully wrap my head around how Russia functions, I have come to realize my own reverence for the Russian people's pride in their history and identity. Studying in Moscow allows for the opportunity to know real, everyday Russian people and understand their stories in a context outside of biased American news stories and media portrayals by people who may have never experienced this part of the world up close. As part of one of the most apathetic, albeit connected generations on record, I believe in the importance of developing an empathy for people in their authentic environments so that diplomacy and compromise can be plausible alternatives to violent conflict. I know that studying the language, into which I have invested so much time and emotion, in the epicenter of its culture will alter the way I view the world and help me more fully grasp the concept of my purpose in interstate relations and global security.