Spring exams are only a few days away, meaning that my first year of college is coming to a bittersweet end.
It seems like only yesterday I was nervously packing up my things to start fresh at a new school in a new town, a few hours away from my family and close friends. As excited as I was deep down, nothing could’ve prepared me for the roller-coaster ahead.
Freshman year, you were difficult at first. Getting into the swing of things took a few weeks. Everything was new and strange and sometimes that was overwhelming. College and high school do not compare in the slightest. There were a few nights where I cried alone in my bed wondering what the hell I’d gotten myself into. Thankfully, everyone around me felt the same way. It’s how I was able to start conversations and make lifelong friends. In our best interest, you gave us the common ground of awkwardness and urged us to band together. Thank you for the new friends, and with them, the new memories.
Aside from friendships, freshman year, you showed me what real freedom looks like. To this day, my favorite part about college is hiding away somewhere deep in the library and studying for hours and hours without interruption. I’ve also enjoyed late night work-out sessions at the rec center, something I could never do before. My life truly became my own because of you.
Speaking of the rec center, thank you for teaching me the value of my own physical, mental, and emotional health. You reminded me of my own worth again and again. You’re here for a reason, you’d say. You thus inspired me to let go of people who no longer saw eye-to-eye with me. This was hard too, but it was incredibly important. Without you, I still might feel the weight of toxic friends.
Although you lifted me up most days and inspired me to do the impossible, sometimes you broke me down. You took people away from me in the worst of ways, pushed me into embarrassing situations, and made me angry on more than one occasion. But the only place to go is up when we feel down, and with your guidance, that’s exactly where I went. The obstacles you threw at me only made me stronger, so I thank you for the bad times, too.
Lastly, thank you for opening up my mind to new ideas and perspectives. Coming from a place that ultimately lacks diversity, you presented numerous opportunities to educate myself on the lives of those different from me, as well as what I can do to make the world a better place. I know I have a lot to learn in the years to come, but you gave me a great foundation. These experiences are invaluable.
Freshman year, through all of the ups and downs, you were there for me. As difficult and nerve-wracking as it was to start, it’s even harder to leave you. Thank you again for the good times and the bad, the friends gained and lost, and for the lasting impact you’ve had on the rest of my life.
[Photo courtesy of the UNCW Honors College Facebook.]