A lot can happen over the course of one year – lives change, new friends are made, old friends are lost, and personal discoveries are made. When you think about how insignificant a single year is in the grand scheme of things, it’s hard to comprehend how so many significant things can occur in such an insignificant period of time. Freshman year of college is one of those years – it is simultaneously the most and least significant year of a person’s life. On one hand, it is the first year of college and the start of adult life, but on the other, it is only the first in a series of four or more years of striving towards a degree that will lead into an adult life. Looking back on it, I can’t believe how quickly this year has gone by.
I’ve been told that everyone’s first year of college is essentially the same, but I don’t agree with that. The course of my first year was just as unconventional as everything else in my life has been – but two schools and three roommates later, I am finally where I am supposed to be. I started my college career at a small, private university in Rhode Island only to discover that I hated it and couldn’t bear to spend another semester there, so I transferred to UNH for the spring. Now, transferring schools and starting over again is hard, but having to start over in the middle of the year is even harder. Honestly, it’s a shame that the year is ending just as I’m starting to feel like I’ve found my place and am getting the hang of this whole college thing.
I can’t count how many days I spent being mad at myself for not choosing to come to UNH in the fall – if I could have gone back in time and told past me to commit to UNH instead of the school I chose, I would have. After a while, though, I realized that being mad at myself wasn’t doing me any good and what I needed to do was go out, get involved, and make up for the semester I lost. Trying to get involved in the second semester was not easy, a lot of the things that I wanted to do were on an audition/interview basis and weren’t looking for new members, but I made the most out of what I had and I couldn’t be happier. That’s not to say that I gave up on the things I had originally wanted to do – I’m going to try again in the fall – but I found some great organs and met some pretty cool people this semester.
Over the past week, I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting on my first year of college and I came to a profound realization. If I hadn’t ended up at UNH the way I did, I wouldn’t truly appreciate how great it is here because I would have nothing to compare it to. I started my freshman year of two places that I could call home – my actual home and the camp I’ve been going to since I was 18 months old – but I’m ending it with three. I am incredibly lucky to be able to say that I have three places that I can call home. Some people barely even have one home, and I have three. I know this sounds kind of cheesy, but I’ve found a home here at UNH and I couldn’t be happier. Getting here may have been a bumpy road, but now it’s smooth sailing… kind of… there’s still the whole school thing, but that’s beside the point. Anyway, see you in the fall, UNH!
Oh.. and have a great summer Wildcats!