Being a senior during this COVID-19 pandemic has definitely been a tiring time. Graduation ceremonies, internships and employment opportunities were pulled under many. Now with everything being postponed to a later date, it doesn’t help seniors like me who are already on a time crunch to figure out life after FSU. The last time I was on campus was on Friday, March 13, 2020. As I was walking around Landis Green, I sensed a change coming to campus. Something about the feeling was telling me that something big would happen. One that will change FSU life as we know it. I tried to comfort my mind by reminding myself that school is closed for two weeks and that classes will resume normally in April. Whew boy, was I wrong.
It deeply saddens me that there were people who I saw for the last time without knowing it would be my last. Being a senior is a fun and thrilling time. But to have your last semester pulled under you without a warning is devasting. I would’ve said bye and hugged the homies a little tighter if I knew it would come to this. It also saddens me going on Facebook and seeing seniors trying to sublease their apartments for the remainder of the semester and some announcing that they’re not coming back to Tallahassee at all.
As I sit in my room in South Florida, I’ve been reflecting on how I want my life to look like after FSU. I’ve been thinking about all the friends I’ve made during my FSU journey. My mentors and others who I’ve met and changed my life. It constantly makes me think about my last article that I wrote before the pandemic took over. In it, I wrote about living in the moment, and that’s one piece of advice that keeps replaying in my mind. This pandemic not only changed my senior year and my life, but it has affected so many other seniors nationwide. If there’s one thing I hope this pandemic has taught people is the importance of being present in the moment and to not take a moment for granted. Many think that there will be another time to say or do something thinking that there will be another time to do that, and that’s where people end up being regretful. Whatever moment you’re in, take that opportunity and spend it as if it’s your last because tomorrow is never promised.
When I moved to Tallahassee during my junior year as a transfer student in 2018, I knew my life was going to change in unbelievable ways. I knew that by the end of it I wouldn’t be the same woman. As two years have gone by, I’m incredibly happy that I’m not the same woman I was coming into it. Although these last few weeks of being senior have been nothing short of the unexpected, I am grateful for how I have lived my college years. I feel content with everything that I have done over the past four years. I have learned that there’s always a bigger picture. Despite everything that’s been going on lately, I’m optimistic about the future and can’t wait to see what it holds.
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