Since going to college, I have hit many milestones, started many new things, and been overall whipped around by life.
1. I started early and ended early, a friend group I thought would last all of college.
I think this is classic for the first few months of college. You start spending a ton of time with a group of people and you are desperate to “find your people” because everyone has told you that you will do this in college, but you come to find out that you all aren’t that compatible and are a bit immature, so it often falls apart. I still have a soft spot in my heart for these people, despite there being a ton of petty drama, because they helped me get my feet wet and I met my boyfriend of one and half years through this friend group.
2. I began my first serious relationship.
This was super weird to me when my boyfriend and I first started dating. I didn’t date at all in high school, so I had absolutely no idea what I was doing or why he was into me. Luckily, though, he had just as little experience as me. Falling in love was pretty awesome, not going to lie, and it definitely will be one of my favorite things I experienced from college. I still forget sometimes that I’m in a serious relationship because it still doesn’t feel real. It’s wonderful, though. I think we learn a lot when we experience love, or even if it’s just something close to it. It’s interesting trying to balance everything and then adding long term dating to the mix. Serious relationships force a lot of us, especially when it’s our first time and we’re still experiencing the newness of college, to reevaluate our priorities.
3. I got started in the career world.
What’s weirder than buying business clothes when you’re in the middle of college and barely knowing how to talk to authority figures? Little else. I was so nervous interviewing and beginning my internship. I had basically nothing on my resume and that really frustrated me. I felt like I wasn’t good enough to be considered. Luckily, the leap of applying paid off and I got it. Most of us are just starting to tiptoe into the career world in college and we’re almost all petrified. If you don’t think you’re qualified for that internship you really want, apply anyway. You may be surprised. We all tend to underestimate our value and from getting this internship, I’ve learned I need to be confident in my value.
4. My parents are moving ten hours away.
This is most likely a unique situation, as most of us moved away, sometimes ten or more hours away, from our parents. However, I was afraid to go far away because I hate change, so I went to college thirty minutes from where I grew up and where my parents live. I’ve always been super close with my parents and it’s been nice having them nearby if I need to get away every once in a while. A couple of months ago, they told me they are moving to Kentucky. To 22 acres of land. On a farm. To say I was shocked would be an understatement, although they had talked about hating living in the suburbs for years. Having the roles reversed has taken some getting used to. I planned on moving far away from them after I graduated, but now the reigns are in their hands and a little earlier than I planned. I hate change, and this was a big one, but I’m happy for them. And excited about getting a pet cow.
I have always resisted change, but every year I learn more and more that “the only constant is change” [1]. And I’m starting to embrace it. (Do we really have any other choice?) Change brings growth, no matter how scary it is going into something having no idea what to expect. The changes that I’ve undergone in college have made me wiser, stronger, nicer, and happier.
Here’s to more change, and more growth, in 2019.