When I’m away from home, I always look for bits and pieces that remind me of my city. Even though I love the rush that accompanies being in a faraway place, and I always say how much I want to travel, I miss the arching palm trees and temperate weather that are so characteristic of Los Angeles. Most of all, I miss the swell of the Pacific Ocean, the limitless blue horizon that is so reflective of the endless nights I’ve spent with my friends looking out over the water.

On my first day at cherubs, I felt a tiny sliver of homey relief wash over me as soon as I got up the nerve to roll up my jeans and step into Lake Michigan. I instantly knew I’d be spending a lot of time there.

There are reasons beyond food and trade that so many ancient civilizations were built close to rivers, lakes and oceans. Water is important for the maintenance of the mind, for balancing out the stress of the day with the simplicity of the evening.

Hanging out at the beach with my friends during the day was a really cool experience, but I’ll never forget the first time I swam in Lake Michigan and wandered off to stand by myself in the water. It was the first time I’d felt truly at peace since I’d been away, and it was the purest calm I’d felt since before junior year started.

In many ways, Lake Michigan is better than the ocean at home. The undesirable salty tang of the ocean water is nonexistent, and the tumultuous tides I’m used to don’t exist here. Instead, the water is a blanket of silvery softness.

Lake Michigan has become a second home for me. Memories of the Chicago skyline from my nights at the beach are now as much a part of me as the memories of the time I spent in the water in Los Angeles.