I love Duke. Other students love Duke. Fans love Duke. Even Duke loves Duke. And this is something I am routinely reminded of, proud of, and happy about. However, people love Duke for a reason. They love their classes; they love their friends; they love their team; they love their club. Two months in, I am slightly wary of how happy I am here.
I worry about complacency of my circumstance and I worry that I am a product of others feeling the same way. I am so excited to have met the girls who I have. I have already made very close friendships and every day I look forward to my time with my friends. I gauge that many others are feeling the same, amazing, way. I am comfortable reaching out to new people or sitting with unknown faces at Marketplace, but that is very different than actively or routinely putting myself into other social groups.
Am I so happy that I am not fully exploring? Do I have a lack of motivation to challenge myself to find new surroundings?
As I start the second half of my first semester, I hope to keep my eyes open to new horizons to prevent these questions from being answered affirmatively. I would like to channel my happiness with my current relationships and activities into comfort that instead of allowing me to settle, allows me to explore because of my solid base and beginning.
As awesome as freshman year has started off, there is no way that we have explored all that we will or that our experiences could possibly be peaking. Let’s prove this to ourselves and allow ourselves to push beyond what we love to ensure that our time on campus will support our “Duke love” long beyond it.