This past week was the first of my senior year. I have spent a lot of time this week settling back into a school routine, navigating my new classes, and enjoying not having very much work yet. This week has also made me especially aware of my “last firsts”. I had my last first day of school, my last first semester, and my last first dinner of the year with my friends. This bittersweet fact has made me think about what I will really miss about being a college student.
I will really miss that very first weekend before the fall semester starts when everyone arrives back on campus. It is the last day or two of summer and everyone is spending time outside and getting back into campus activities. I really cherish the memories of sitting with my roommate after settling in to wherever we are living that year, eating some kind of takeout.
I will miss seeing the way campus looks as the seasons change. I have always loved walking through the main quad and other spots as the leaves turned orange, as snow fell, and as blossoms came out. I will also really miss those morning walks to class (yes, even during winter). I loved it when I could grab a coffee and walk around seeing people sitting on picnic blankets or running into some kind of event going on.
I can’t believe I am saying this, but I will also miss those late-night study sessions right before a scary exam. I usually studied with my friends who were taking the same class, and we would take turns quizzing each other on our shared flashcards. I have so many funny memories of us sitting on the floor and laughing about every answer we got wrong. Sometimes we would get to the point of saying “it is what it is, I know what I know.”. We always bonded so much during those rough nights, and my favorite part was celebrating with a sweet treat once the exam was over the next day.
Besides all these little things, I know which part is going to be the most difficult to leave behind. After this year, all my friends and the amazing people I have met will move somewhere else. Some might move back to their hometowns, and some might move across the country. I don’t know where everyone is going to end up yet, but I do know that we will never all live this close to each other again. It is hard to think about how all the people I can walk to right now may live hours away from me this time next year.
I am going to spend the rest of my senior year noticing all these small things that I love about this time in my life. Being a college student has been a remarkable and life-changing experience. I have learned so much, met so many amazing people, and have created memories that will last me a lifetime. I can’t wait to see what the rest of this year will bring.