The emotions that come with graduating from college surprisingly snuck up on me. Whenever someone asked me how I felt about graduating, I would quickly respond something along the lines of “Oh I can’t wait,” or “I’m so ready to graduate.”
And I’m finally starting to realize that I couldn’t have been more wrong.
While I’m looking forward to what comes after the tassel moves from right to left and definitely am not going to miss all of the work that comes with classes, I realized on my second to last day that the emotional feelings I had didn’t have anything to do with that.
It had to do with the life I was leaving behind, the faces I may never see again, and the endless support that has grown exponentially over four years from a community that has welcomed me with open arms as their peer; their friend; their family.
In coming to this conclusion, I also realized that I spent so much time wishing the year away instead of cherishing every moment. I constantly was looking forward instead of living in the present, so in my final weeks of college, it’s something I vow to do.
Rather than reflecting and thinking about the things I feel that I did wrong or regret over the last four years, I’d like to think about all of the things I did right:
- As someone who feels anxiety surrounding new experiences and trying new things, I gave myself permission to step outside of my comfort zone and try them – and enjoy them.
- I set personal, professional, and academic goals for myself and did my best to make them. Even though I might not have achieved all of them, I’m proud of myself for trying.
- I met my people – the ones who love me for me and were supportive, accepting and kind.
Regardless of the things you are going to do during your four years of college, you’re going to make mistakes because we are all human. All that matters at the end of the day is how you choose to remember those mistakes and the good things that might’ve come from them.