On Thursday morning, I sat across from one of my friends at breakfast and said, “I’m kind of over it,” referring to being at Notre Dame. She looked at me, validly so, like I had sprouted a second head. I knew that what I’d just said was a bit of a hot take. Most people love their school, but Notre Dame students and alumni REALLY love their school, so saying that I was ready to leave Notre Dame was not the usual response. I continued to say, “I’ve just been feeling very stuck recently,” to which my friend nodded, as that seemed to give a bit of an explanation to my controversial declaration.
I thought about why I felt so stuck for the rest of the day and realized that while I love Notre Dame, it had served me as well as it was going to. There was no novelty in the school aspect; after four years, I knew exactly how to work the system to get as much as possible out of it while putting in the least amount of work. I wasn’t trying to form new relationships because I would be leaving in four months and would rather spend energy on the important friendships I already have. I had grown as much as I could have in this environment; and since I’m a person that longs to always be growing, changing and challenged, I knew that I needed to move on from here and onto whatever life had in store for me next. I was grateful for everything Notre Dame had given me, but I felt ready to leave…until the 100 Days Dance later that night.
The 100 Days Dance is put on by the Senior Class Council to mark the 100 days remaining until the seniors’ graduation. Walking in and seeing so many familiar faces and then dancing the night away with my best friends made me realize how blessed I am to be here. It also reminded me how much I love this place, how much is going to change in the next year and how much I don’t want to leave. In a year, I won’t have fun dances like this planned for me and I won’t have all of my best friends in the same place.
Events like the 100 Days Dance need to occur because it helps seniors process and come to terms with their impending graduation. It snaps cynics like me back to a reality of gratitude and reminds us how precious this time is.
