Four years ago I was preparing to graduate high school and dreading the day I would have to move away from home to start my college career at Virginia Tech. I spent my first two semesters living on the 12th floor of the skyscraper of daily disasters known as Slusher Tower. While most days were spent trying to stay cool, almost dying in our barely functional elevator, and cursing whoever had broken the ‘good’ elevator; I had a lot of great memories that were made in that dorm. I turned 18 in Slusher and spent my first hours of ‘adulthood’ layering on clothes, trekking to the local 7/11 and then coming back to have a casual dance session in the middle of the pod. I met my first friend on campus and we bonded through our many adventures throughout the years (Gateway Hosts 2016, BCI 2018, failed party #138329) and I still consider her to be one of my good friends today.
I won’t bore you with the craziness of my second and third year. Nothing crazy happened other than wrecking my beloved car but I overcame the issues that stemmed from that and other problems; and after a lot of hard work I ended up joining Her Campus VT. I originally joined to use it as an outlet for my emotions and to be able to build my portfolio as I had let my writing fall to the side during high school and the beginning of college. I slowly began to see HCVT as more than just an outlet for my emotions, but as a way to be able to shine light on situations that were current or being overlooked by not only our campus community but the country as well.
Take Back the Night 2016
As I became more involved I began to see HCVT as less of just an organization to add to my resume, and more as a group of friends that I truly enjoyed being around. I’ve enjoyed my time as a writer and I have loved being the social media director and getting to be a part of the rebranding of our chapter from a front row perspective. As a group we have gone through and overcome much more than we could have ever anticipated in the past two semesters both personally and within our organization. It is the ability to come out of these struggles even stronger and with a renewed sense of strength and support that makes us such a strong team and makes me proud to pass on the torch to members that I know are just as dedicated as I am to using our platform to be a voice for all college-aged women and others who may not feel like they are being heard.
I’ll leave you with some of my last thoughts now. Throughout my four years here at this university I have seen and experienced things that make my blood boil, my eyes water, and my heart break. I have seen people broken and scared. I have witnessed the effects of a failing system that prevents people from speaking up and getting the help that they deserve. Throughout my four years at this university I have seen and experienced unconditional love and acceptance. I have seen what it’s like for a community to rally around one another and to hold our heads high as we shout messages of love and support to each other. I have witnessed the power of one voice sparking a movement that shocks the system like a tidal wave hitting a major city. Throughout my four years at this university I found my voice. I lived through and experienced every emotion and feeling that I could have ever imagined. I found people who understand me and who allow me to speak my mind openly without judgment. I saw the glimpse of joy on my face in the mornings when I would think about the words that people would read that had spilled from my fingertips like water from a faucet.
My time at Virginia Tech has been nothing and everything that I expected it to be. I have hated and loved every moment of every day that I stepped foot on campus and saw the towering Hokie Stone covered buildings towering above me. I don’t know what life has in store for me after this, and I don’t even know when or if I’ll be walking back onto this campus again. I do know one thing, and that’s the happiness I felt the moment I woke up for class the first day, is the same happiness I feel now as I wake up for one of my classes for the last time. I have built so many memories and lived through so many chapters of my life story and while I’m sad to end this chapter, I am excited to start a new one that is just as fulfilling and exciting.
Thanks for the memories.
– A.G.
Image Sources: 1-4 Provided by Author, 5-9 Provided by Author & Taken by Sara Mathew