#SOCOLLEGE: an ode to the new year

Summer is quickly coming to a close. The days are already getting shorter and move-in is upon us. Friends are back in town and the first football Saturday is almost in view.

The bittersweet truth that we all hate to admit is that at Notre Dame you can’t be mad about coming back to school. This is the place where so many friendships have been made. Notre Dame is where family is. For me, it started out as my second home, but even after one year it feels like so much more. 

I love the beginning of the new school year because there’s something refreshing about being able to make a new set of goals. There is so much energy and excitement in the air that it almost feels electric. Being a student at Notre Dame has to be one of the best feelings in the world and I am reminded of the amazing peers that I am surrounded by when we are reunited in the fall. It makes you realize how much you have missed being without them during the summer. As much as we all love summer, there will always be a part of us that longs for school to start again.

With the new year comes so many possibilities. As a sophomore, I’m excited to step up and be a leader for the incoming freshmen. I know how much I looked up to the upperclassmen in my dorm and I am excited to make the same impact on my younger peers. New classes facilitate new opportunities for friendships to blossom. 

Even though it sounds cliché, this includes friendships with professors. Over the summer I had a professor who encouraged students to meet with him and simply talk about life and our experiences at Notre Dame. He said something that really stuck with me; our time at Notre Dame should be a tapestry of experiences rather than simply a transcript. This is my goal for the coming school year. 

I am going to try new things and become involved while pushing myself to excel in my classes. Instead of just learning for the sake of an exam, I am going to learn for my future. Many people say that college is the best time of their lives. I am speaking from experience when I say that these years go by fast. It seems like just yesterday I was graduating from high school. Now I’m about to start my second year of college. I’ve had more fun in one year here at Notre Dame than I had in four years of high school. 

Even though we dread the beginning of classwork and early mornings, we should be thankful for the start of school. It means we still have time left to discover who we are at Notre Dame. While we still have responsibilities, it is our time to begin again and make even more fabulous memories. Welcome back and have a great year!