Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
For those of you not from the United States, Thanksgiving is a holiday dedicated to stuffing yourself with delicious food, hanging out with family and friends, and appreciating what you’re thankful for. While I’m a big proponent of noting what you’re thankful for on an everyday basis, Thanksgiving forces you to think about it because there’s no work or distractions — it’s all about relaxing and enjoying those around you.
I was sitting waiting for my English class to start last week and I found myself thinking of the things I was going to mention at the dinner table on Thanksgiving when my family goes around and we each say what we’re thankful for. Naturally, the list included my family, my cats, my health, and friends.
But, I noticed there were a few new additions to the list: new friends, an amazing roommate, starting to figure out what I want to do with my life, finding a love for fitness, and lastly, Her Campus.
I’m going to put this in context really quick: I’ve been involved in Her Campus since the beginning of my freshman year at BU last fall. However, I often didn’t attend the meetings because it conflicted with my classes first semester, while second semester I was having a hard time with some personal stuff and the e-board was very understanding. I still wrote every week, but I wasn’t involved.
This year before I moved onto campus, I was talking with my mom and I said I wanted to get more involved with Her Campus this year. I wanted to become an editor, come up with better content, and just generally get to know the girls more. I can honestly say I’ve done all of those things and I’m so happy I made that decision.
Being an editor has been so rewarding in that I get to work on my editing, writing, and grammar skills which are very important for my English major and current chosen career path as a journalist. I also get to work with my writers on developing their ideas and seeing what kind of amazing content they’re putting out. I’ve been able to develop a great relationship with them and I’m so thankful for that.
In terms of content, I won’t sit here and say I had bad content last year. I’m still very proud of the things I put out considering it was my first time being involved with any kind of publication where my writing would be put up for the world to see. But I’ve worked very hard to develop better content this year in terms of putting my personal stories out there, even if they’re hard to talk about, like my weight.
I want to put things out that are relatable, that I’m proud of, and that I just generally enjoy versus what I did last year: only thinking of what other people wanted to read. I’m embracing my interests and that’s coming through in my writing.
I’ve also been able to develop my writing skills, and the progression is evident if you read my articles from the beginning of last year and compare them to the articles I’ve written this semester. Her Campus has helped me embrace and develop my passion for writing. I’m beyond thankful for that assistance.
Lastly, I vowed to become closer to the Her Campus girls, even if it meant just getting to know one person. I’ve been fortunate enough to have bonded with a number of girls whether it’s my three Littles, my writers, my fellow editors, or the e-board members. Special shout out to Jess for dealing with all of my silly questions and crazy ideas and for loving Moana as much as I do.
I always knew our Her Campus girls were special but I never knew how individually amazing they were until I took the time to get to know them and saw all of the things their friendships could add to my life. Reading their articles and talking to them has become one of the best parts of my week. No matter if I’m stressed, sick, or sad, these girls always find a way to make me smile and feel amazing.
Sophomore year has been a hard one for me for a lot of reasons: I’ve had to deal with friendships changing and losing people, having no direction for what I want to do in life, and just general stress and anxiety typical of 19-year-olds. It gets overwhelming and hard. But, as cliché as it sounds, Her Campus is one of the things that really keeps me going — even if it’s just the fact that I know I have to make a deadline.
I know that if I ever have an article issue, event issue, or just a personal issue and need someone to talk to I can go to any of the amazing girls I’ve met because we are ALWAYS there for each other. Our campus coordinator Zoe and I have made many jokes about “who needs a boy when you have Her Campus?” But, it’s true. I have the most amazing team behind me, supporting me, and pushing me to be the best I can possibly be in writing, editing, and just as a person.
Sometimes in life, you don’t know who you can count on, but I know these girls have got my back no matter what. Having a solid support system when everything feels like it’s falling apart is so important and I’m so so thankful Her Campus is part of my support system.
So, to the HCBU crew,
Thank you. Thank you for always being there. Thank you for dealing with my being late on deadlines, my stupid questions as a new editor, and missing meetings because of my horrible immune system. Thank you for showing me the path I want to go down for my career. Thank you for letting me be myself and giving me an outlet to get my thoughts and ideas out. Thank you for being one of the most amazing parts of my college experience.
Thank you for being HCBU and never change because every single one of you is amazing and has so much to offer.
Love your incredibly thankful and sappy editor/writer,
Arianna <3
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