Warning * Honesty Ahead
As I am typing this article I have 18 days until graduation. It seems like a lot but in reality, it’s only two weeks and there’s so much more left to do. I need to finish student teaching, finish classes, pick up my cap and gown, get graduation pictures the list goes on and on. When they say that your last semester goes the quickest they are not lying.
When I started college four years ago, I was totally lost, both physically around campus and mentally. I am a first-generation college student and had to figure out a lot of stuff on my own. Side note: Did you know you have to pay to graduate? I just learned that, and I was not very happy about it. But at the beginning of my career, I was not sure how I was going to do it all, live at home, work part-time, go to class, have a social life, etc. It was not easy, there were low days, one when I woke up covered in my own vomit New Year’s 2020, should have been a sign of what was about to come. I also had to start my mental health recovery journey, finally accepting therapy and antidepressants, and that it’s okay to not be okay. To say the least, my plate was more than full, and I never thought I would be this close to graduating college ever.
During that time I made a promise to a co-worker and friend. He gave me a pep talk, essentially I was not to drop out of college. He pulled out a piece of paper from the printer sitting next to him, and in all caps wrote the word DIPLOMA with a pen. He said I was to get that stupid piece of paper no matter what. I still have that piece of paper, and soon I will have my actual diploma as well. Both will be framed and both mean the world to me.
But if you think college is scary let me tell you just how scary the end of it is. My mind has been littered with job applications, interviews, and not only what’s next but what’s in five years, ten years? Graduating college is just as or if not more overwhelming than the preceding four years. Take a deep breath, recite your mantra, and be damn proud of yourself.
I know that for me it’s hard to remember the progress. Just the other day, post-melt-down, my dad had to remind me of my accomplishments. I am a first- gen college graduate, I am graduating debt-free, and I am teaching right after graduation. Above that I am loved and celebrated.
Here’s where I start the boring thank-you list. Thank you to my family, my friends, my boyfriend, my dog, my mentors, my professors, and my therapists, you all make up my support system, who which I could have never accomplished graduating without. I also want to thank HerCampus for publishing my work and providing me with opportunities, and a club to be excited about, I will miss writing weekly for them.
College is a long but quick ride and my biggest advice to anyone going through this journey is not to just keep going (there is light at the end of the tunnel), but also to do what’s best for you.