When September rolled around, I could hardly contain my excitement. Only a few more days until I could live on my own again, on my own terms. After four months of living at home, I could taste the freedom that would come with living in the city again. Boston felt like more of a home to me than my actual home in California because I really truly feel like I have grown up in Boston. A lot of this maturity has been a result of my freshmen year. Even though I had already lived away from home for the entirety of high school at a boarding school nine hours away from my family, living across the country proved to be a completely different experience.
During my freshmen year, I encountered a lot of firsts: my first time living with four other girls in a suite-style dorm, my first college lecture, my first internship in a focus area I actually enjoyed, my first boyfriend, my first time being able to write for a super cool magazine. I was handed a bunch of independence when I arrived on campus last fall. I took that independence and I ran with it. I created a life that I was able to take full responsibility for while also incorporating time to explore the city and meet new people. So, after being fully immersed in the culture of the campus and the enigma of Boston, I developed a deep love for the city that was beginning to feel like home.
As the school year concluded, I was ready to fly back to California and see my family — but I was also sad to leave Boston because of all the memories attached to it and all the niches I had woven myself into. I was afraid to leave and come back to a city that had forgotten me; a city that maybe wouldn’t recognize me in September. It was scary to leave and even more unfamiliar when I returned home.
Instead of living with girls my own age, I was living with my mom and my brothers for the first time in almost five years. I wasn’t used to the responsibility that came with my younger brothers or the rules that my mom had at home. It was almost like I had completely forgotten how to live with my family. And that in itself was strange because I felt like an alien. We had also moved when I was away at high school so aside from a few people I had met in the area, I hardly knew anybody. So, summer proved extremely lonely and unsatisfying. I felt such a disconnect between myself and where I was living that I fell into a slight depression during July and longed to be back in Boston, where things felt more familiar. But I persevered, poured my time into my summer job, and started planning what I was going to do in Boston when I returned.
My time back home helped me realize that I wanted to make Boston and the community of the university part of me. I decided I wanted to become involved in more clubs and activities on campus. I wanted to meet new people, make new friends, and explore places I had previously left untouched.
I hope that my story can inspire some of you to make Boston University your home and become involved in whatever interests and excites you, either on campus or around the city. The more involved you are on campus, the more love and knowledge you will receive from your four years here. Becoming a part of the city you are living in is just as important as your undergraduate education; both are fundamental steps towards a brighter and more knowledgeable future.