Unlike many college students, my sophomore year was an absolute blast. I lived with my best friends, joined a bunch of new organizations, and felt really optimistic about the latter half of my college experience. But as soon as I stepped foot on campus for my junior year, I began feeling a little lost. So many of my friends went abroad for the semester, and I lived on the edge of campus away from most people I knew. My roommate plays a sport, so she spent most of the day at class and at practice, which left me alone in our apartment most of the time during these first couple of months. I realized that I had a built-in group of people to do everything with last year: from going out to eating meals to talking for hours about nothing and everything. I missed the ease with which I could open the door to my room and talk to someone whenever I wanted. This year, though, I spend a lot more time alone, and I find myself checking social media more often, envying the experiences of my friends all over Europe and Australia.
Although it made me uncomfortable, I have forced myself to reach out to more people. Now I am more purposeful with the time I spend with people, and instead of being in my room too often, I go to the Caf, the library, and other popular places, where I know I’ll see familiar faces. And I’m making plans for next semester: I’ll be abroad in Europe from January-June. I know that this semester showed me that I like being around people, and when my class reunites senior year, I’ll be thankful for my experience this semester. And as different (and difficult) as this semester has been, I’m glad I went through it because I learned so much about myself.