It’s that time of year – another semester gone, and summer is approaching. We all go into new semesters, summers, and school years with the best intentions. In the past, I wrote an article about my goals for this semester, and encouraged you, HC readers, to follow my lead. What did I succeed in doing? What am I going to have to keep changing? All the answers below:
1.Eating Healthy
I will say, I ate a lot of carrots this semester. But, I also discovered what a huge rip off the by-weight salad bar is. It became pretty easy to cut the junk food down to once a week. One piece of advice is to have your “fries night” on a day when you have a late class with lots of friends. My weekly post-choir Caps runs were the highlight of my semester, and getting my veggie fix every other day of the week helped me feel great!
2. Studying Away from the Dorm
From finding my special table at my favourite cafe (it’s a Starbucks, but whatever) to heading right from class into the library, I did 95% of my work away from my room. It got to the point where I couldn’t do work in my room. That dorm-issued desk went to waste and all my in-dorm computer time was devoted entirely to Netflix, Spotify, and discovering the wonderful world of podcasts. Did studying in cafes and the library spark a daily iced coffee habit? Maybe. Would I have done it any other way? Nope.
3. Clubs Clubs Clubs
I started swing dancing, then stopped because of a scheduling conflict, and I wrote exactly one HC article other than this one. So, not a perfect execution of that goal. I did start doing yoga twice a week and became more engaged in the community of the clubs I was already in. Plus, I figured out that if there isn’t a club I’d want to join, I should just start my own clubs. As I write this, I’m cooking up plans for all the things I can do next year!
4. Exploring My City
Two near disastrous beach visits (charge your phone before you head out into the wilderness!) and some new favorite spots in the city later, I can say that I know Victoria a little better now. Discovering this city has helped me become even more sure about my decision to live here, and helped me become more confident in my navigation skills. I might not be able to tell you what street I’m on at any given time, but I couldn’t do that back home either, and there’s always time to learn.
5. Filled Up My Cup (and let it overflow with love)
The greatest thing I accomplished this semester was learn how to be alone, how to have casual, adult friendships, and how to make myself happy. In my previous article, I thought it was going to be way easier than it really was. I made some mistakes (don’t cut your hair out of spite;don’t close yourself off on purpose!) but I also learned a lot of lessons (sometimes you have to invite people out instead of waiting for invites;go to your CL’s planned events;you can go do things by yourself!) In high school, especially if you’re in a club or group, you’re never alone. In university, you’re alone a lot. But you don’t have to be lonely. As the old summer camp “non-denominational grace” song goes, I filled up my cup, and let it overflow with love.
How did you do with your goals this semester? What are you doing next time?