My first semester at Boston University was a whirlwind but in a good way. I got to meet so many new people, learn a lot about widely different subjects, and had the chance to be on my own for the first time.
Coming to Boston, a city I had never been to before, was slightly overwhelming. I grew up in the suburbs and never knew what living in a metropolitan area was like. But I think I got adjusted to it pretty quickly! I had a couple of learning curves, like figuring out the T and being confused about where campus buildings were, but I’m practically an expert now.
Another thing I quickly got pretty comfortable with was being away from my family. Something that worried me a lot was the distance between us, with them being in Washington State, but I had been waiting to be on my own since my last year of high school. Several friends of mine were struggling with homesickness, but it never came to me.
The biggest issue on my mind when coming to college was making friends. By choosing BU, I knew that no one from my high school would be there, and I gained a fresh start somewhere new. This was both a good and bad thing: I basically got to start over with new people, but I also didn’t know where to begin.
Luckily, I joined a community service initiative before the semester started so I could meet new people. Through that, I met some amazing people who became my friends in a short amount of time. I also made friends within the College of Communication, which was easy because we all share the same interests. It was nice for a while, but towards the middle of the semester, I felt really lonely.
Group chats started falling silent, everyone was too busy to go out, and I saw people I knew hanging out together on their Instagram stories. I felt devastated and always questioned: “why not me?” I buried myself in work and kept busy by reading, going on walks, and eating at cafes, but loneliness followed me like a dark cloud looming over my head. I don’t know what shifted, but what was once the lively college experience that I had always dreamed of turned into the depressing isolation that I feared.
I did get out of it, though. I focused on what I did have instead of what I didn’t, and I realized that I had a lot. I laughed with friends every other morning before our COM101 lecture; I went to concerts with music lovers like me; I had dinner with new people. I learned that feeling lonely, especially in college, is a universal experience. If you’re struggling with this too, it’s important to do things that you love to do and to not focus on the negative.
I love BU and everyone I’ve met so far. I’ve made such great strides academically and personally. I hit a rough spot, one that I’m sure will come back again, but I know that there will always be some kind of silver lining.
Here’s to going into the spring semester with a positive attitude!
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