Dear Freshman Year Sofi,
“Relax.” That word will be your mantra for the next three years at Florida State University (FSU). I know you are nervous to leave home for college. You are entering unknown territory where you will not only meet new people and professors, but you will also need to figure out how to cook, clean and stay organized, all at the age of 18. It is normal to feel overwhelmed and constantly ask, “Is this a good idea?” or “What am I thinking?”
Well, relax. Your senior year self is here to put your nerves at ease.
Summer C will be the best summer of your life. People might think it is odd that you are living with your guy best friend. Don’t listen to that, Andres will be your go-to because he always has your back and you have his. You’ll develop a Sunday cleaning schedule together and find a little piece of home with your “Familia” for Sunday Fam Nights. Those two summer classes will be the start of your FSU GPA. Yes, you will feel overwhelmed with that geography class, but I guarantee those long hours spent reading for the class will be worth it. Those six weeks truly fly by and soon, you drive home and spend the next three weeks with your family and your boo before a whole new semester begins.
Fall 2019 has officially begun. This is still new territory, yet you have some confidence because it feels like you were just here for the summer term. Freshman year is filled with daily jam sessions in the dorm with Emily and figuring out those math problems that don’t even have numbers (that’s math for liberal arts for you). You will visit home very often, so don’t think you are trapped in a shoebox dorm for the whole semester. But most importantly, you will learn how to adjust to college life for more than six weeks.
Eventually, however, college life at FSU will be put on hold as you transition to online due to the pandemic. Yes, your usual routine at FSU will be disrupted, but relax. You will adjust and find value in being home for the next six months. Amid online classes, you will grow closer to your family and enjoy every moment with J to make up for the long-distance. Quarantine life entails nightly family walks, homemade meals (thanks Mom!), and lots of FaceTime calls with Fam Bam.
As the Fall 2020 semester slowly advances, you wonder how you got through all those months in college. Life at home feels comfortable and like you never left. Yet, it is time to return to Tallahassee and move into your first college apartment. Exciting! The start of junior year is filled with decorating that adorable apartment with Emily and staying focused with online classes. This time reminds you of quarantine life at home but with a bit more freedom in Tallahassee.
Junior year comes and goes. You take advantage of the online classes and adventure with your friends to new places. You travel to Thomasville, Orlando and of course Miami. There’s more flexibility in your schedule to visit home, so you take the opportunity.
As junior year finishes, you wonder how quickly your time at FSU has gone by. But slow down! Senior year is just getting started, and that is where you are today. Enjoy every moment as a senior at Florida State. Savor your weekly coffee visits to Catalina’s and embrace those Tallahassee blue skies as you walk to campus. This time in your life doesn’t last forever, so enjoy it.
Here’s to your last year as a Seminole and never forget all the opportunities the 850 has given you. As always, Go Noles!
Best wishes,
Senior Year Sofi
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