So you just finished your first year of college, and now you have to return to the real world. In high school, summer was the most exciting time of our lives because we had no worries and no work. We could sleep all day and stay up all night only to do it all over again the next day. Summer during college is completely different. College almost changes the idea of summer. People expect you to do something with your time and not just lay by the pool. You have to adjust to an entirely new way of living without everything you’ve grown so accustomed to the past 8 months. People always tell you that leaving for college will be hard, but no one ever tells you how much harder it is to leave your first year of college. For those on the quarter system it’s only been a couple of weeks, but this has been a difficult couple of weeks and here’s why:
1. You Miss the People.
In college, you get used to having your friends a short walk away at all times, and your best friends might even live on the floor above yours. Now, everyone is separated, and your friend a floor above you went back to New York. You wont see her for 3 months, and you had just spent everyday with her for the past 8 months. Your roommates, whom you spent every waking minute with, won’t be there to get lunch or dinner with you. They won’t be there waiting on your bed to hear about your day in excruciating detail.
2. Your Eating Schedule Is Off.
Since the dining halls are open at specific times throughout the day, you start eating at the same times everyday. These times are often much earlier than over the summer or even during high school when you wouldn’t get home until 7 pm after practice. Now that you’re back home, you have to readjust your eating schedule because no one under 60 eats dinner at 5 pm these days.
3. You Had To Say Goodbye To Your Dorm Room For Good.
This might seem like an exciting time for some people; to finally have some peace and quiet away from your roommates sounds like a dream, but you will miss it. You will miss your tiny bed and your tiny closet. You will miss making friends in the bathroom while you shower. That box you moved into at the beginning of the year became your home. You realized that 3 people sharing one room is actually quite spacious, and your room at home will soon feel giant. Your room may have been filthy and crammed, but it will be difficult to say goodbye to the memories that were made there.
You’ll never forget the late nights spent with your friends or that one professor who actually got you excited about going to class. Hopefully, the years to come will be just as amazing as the first, but it will be a hard one to top.
