Dear First Semester of Freshman Year,
Where did the time go? It feels like only yesterday I was packing up my entire room, driving 150 miles away from my family, and moving into my new home for the academic year. During my first day of classes, I felt shy, nervous, and pretty awkward. I hid a map behind my daily planner as I tried to navigate the large campus, accidentally burned a bagel during the morning breakfast rush, and managed to jump on the wrong bus to head back to my dorm. Talk about a transition.
Remember how hard it was for me at first? Remember how I saw my parents every two weeks for the first two months of college? Then remember how I stopped needing them after that. Yup, I was pretty proud of myself too. Remember how I struggled in my classes? How I would study hours and hours on exams only to be a below average student? Remember how I stepped it up, reprioritized my studies, and raised my grades all-around? I did that.
There were so many ups, first semester, that we shared: my first “A” on an exam, making the club lacrosse team, finally navigating all my classes without a map, and meeting the most amazing girls on my floor who are now practically my sisters. There, of course, have also been some downs: struggling academically, considering transferring, disagreements with friends, and even the poor and disappointing performance by our football team this season. But those never stopped me; I got through it all, first semester.
I can’t believe we’re already halfway through, freshman year. High school graduation feels so recent and the summer feels like it was yesterday. Time has flown by, it seems, but boy am I enjoying the ride! Freshman year has been all that I hoped and dreamed about and college truly is a great experience. I’m already learning and discovering things that I’ve never known about myself. It’s like I’m being reintroduced to myself again every day. That’s all thanks to you, first semester.
So, adios to a great first semester and here’s to the future spring semester. There are new classes to take, new opportunities to discover, new friends to meet, and new memories to form. I can’t wait to get out there and top the greatness that was you, first semester of my freshman year.
Sincerely,
Blake
P.S. That time, this fall, when I slipped down a flight of stairs, in front of just about everybody… did that really have to happen, first semester? Please work with me here. After all, I am only a freshman.