For most people, college is the beginning of the end—the final transition from teenager to adult.
The lucky ones walk in, arms filled with clothes, pillows, snacks, and enough maturity to take on the world; others walk in with pure enthusiasm, blissfully unaware of the massive changes charging their way, and the rest of us are stuck somewhere miserably in between.
So here they are, from one lost freshmen to you: The three things I’ve learned from my first month in college.
1. There is always someone that knows more than you.
It never fails. You could have read ahead. You could have taken a class over the same subject in high school. It doesn’t matter. There will ALWAYS be someone, in that room that knows more than you, but that is not a bad thing. In fact, it’s a great thing. Why? Because it means you have the chance to grow, and to learn more.
2. There are more people out there than you think.
I grew up in small town. I lived my life in the same place, with the same people, so you could say that my world view is rather limited. College has made me realize the impact new people, and new ideas can have. I’m not saying my moral compass has been altered. What I’m saying is, that it’s refreshing to meet people from different places that have different views.
3. Sometimes it is good to be awkward.
I’m the first to admit that meeting new people is horrifying. I hate introducing myself, and I’m so bad at it that I cringe just thinking about it. But if you don’t feel awkward at some point, that means you aren’t trying anything out of your comfort zone, and that means you aren’t learning anything. Plus, you won’t make any friends. You do the math, no friends + no knowledge = Thousands of dollars and a lot of time wasted.
We know we are supposed to “find our self”, “grow as individuals”, and “become adults”, or at least that is what everyone keeps telling us.
The only problem is we don’t understand what any of that really means.
It’s been one month already and I’m still so in the dark, a flashlight wouldn’t help me. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t learned a valuable lesson or two. I’m grateful for the opportunites and growth that OSU has given me so far!