This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Illinois State chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

After Spring Break, I had the heart-breaking realization that soon, I’d be graduating and leaving my short “side quest” of college. I only attended ISU for two years after living at home and transferring from Illinois Valley Community College. Many of my friends know that I was never super into college, but this past year, I’ve discovered a new appreciation for it. I never wanted to go, but now I’m happy I did.

As we begin the first week of April, it’s becoming more and more saddening that soon, I will say good-bye to all of the friends, experiences, environments, and opportunities that college has allowed me. I will never be in Her Campus or Horticulture Club again. I will never get to walk through the Quad just to find a pen full of puppies. I will never have access to as many professionals and resources to aid with my career. I will never get to use “I have homework” as an excuse not to do something. As much as I’m excited to graduate and start my next chapter, I’m a little anxious and sad that I have to leave something that I only had for two years. It almost feels like I’m breaking up with the whole experience. Classes and friends and homework are a part of my daily life, and now it feels like I have to learn to live without it.

Over the past few weeks, I told myself that I would make the most out of the remaining one month of school, and that means I’m packing my schedule tight with as many new experiences as possible.

I never stay in my college town over the weekends, instead, I drive home to work and see my family; however, this month, I’ve decided to stay at school for a weekend to try something new. After all, a little voice in the back of my head keeps whispering, “Do it while you have the chance,” and it’s a very convincing voice. The weekend I’m staying in Bloomington is also the weekend of a popular bar crawl, so it’s the perfect opportunity to experience something new with my friends.

I also signed up for a Candlelight Yoga session at Destihl Beer Hall in Normal, Illinois, and went to that with a new friend from class. They put on many events similar to this, like goat yoga, painting workshops, and craft fairs. I tend to stray away from group activities or going to the gym, so the idea of working out with a group of people was a little nerve-wracking, but I ended up loving the experience and have even begun checking for similar events!

Silhouette of woman doing yoga at sunset — Photo by Kike Vega from Unsplash

I’ve found plenty of interesting, local events during my search of new experiences. Here are some that I found for you to do before the semester is over too! Most of these are local to the Bloomington-Normal area, but some stray out to Washington and Peoria if you’re down for a drive!

At the end of the day, I’m looking forward to making the most of the time I have left in college. It may not be everybody’s best years, but it’s no doubt a really transformative era. These are the years between adolescence and adulting. These are the years where it’s okay to explore, try new things, and figure out who you are. These are the years that we will never get back, because afterwards, we’re stuck with the real world.

Making the Most of College Before Graduation

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