Freshman year of college was a weird, hazy time in my life. I was trying to figure out my life plans and future, navigating my living situation, my long-distance relationship and what major I wanted to pursue. One minute I was living with my parents and had the luxury of home-cooked meals and a room to myself, and the next I was eating Raising Canes to the point where it was making me sick to my stomach. I was also vying for some alone time. There are so many things I would tell my college freshman year self to ease her mind about starting adulthood and college.
I would tell myself to not worry about what crowd I was becoming a part of. I remember seeing all of the art kids and thinking they were cooler, more stylish than me and that they wouldn’t accept me. What I didn’t understand then was that friendships happen organically and organic friendships are honestly the purest ones! Why would I want to be in a group that gives off pretentious energy and makes me feel unnoticed? Because they’re hot and artistic?! Well, I was hot and artistic then, and I am now. I would tell freshman Sydney that I would find my people in due time and that my worth isn’t based on whether or not people think me and my friends are in the “cool crowd.”
Something else I would tell my freshman year self would be to not go to those gross frat parties. My first semester of college, I went to countless frat parties hosted by strangers that would assess whether me and my crew could get in according to how many girls were in the party, and whether or not they thought we were attractive or not. Ew! I would tell myself that sometimes staying in with friends is more fun than trying to force myself to have fun in a sweaty, over-crowded house where corny people are grinding on each other without any rhythm.
Finally, and most importantly, I would want freshman year me to know that I am allowed to change my mind and be unsure. I remember thinking freshman year that if I didn’t know what my major was exactly and what I wanted to do, that I was so far behind and could never catch up. Little did I know that I would go in as a psychology major, change it to social work, consider theatre and finally land on fashion merchandising. Even after all of those changes, I am still graduating on time. I would tell freshman year me to take it easy and slow and that the future would fall into place.
I didn’t need to compare my path to my peers and friends! I had my own path all along. My path was okay because all paths don’t have to be linear. I would tell myself that even though my path may be a winding road, that it’s my road. I would tell myself that I promise I won’t screw it up!
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