Realizing that I was finally a senior and officially going to be going off to college was an existential crisis I wasn't quite prepared for. This was actually happening. To ME. I'd read about it in books and seen it in countless movies and tv shows, but when it came time for it to be my turn.... I wasn't prepared. I was drawing a blank and filling it in with the worst possibilities. Being an adult was a looming responsibility and making friends in a new place was just as daunting. I mean, what really was this college thing I was getting myself into?
Being in college for a little over two months now has already taught me life lessons and I have already gained so much more knowledge on things I didn't know beforehand, that no one could have prepared me for. This being said, the very first thing I've learned is that ... adults DO NOT know everything and they DO NOT have everything together. I've always admired adults and wondered how they had everything so neat and tidy in their lives. I mean, how the heck did they pay taxes? Adults were always associated with positive attributes in my mind. Now, being one is a totally different story. I really did think that many answers were just going to be told to me in a step by step model, but I found out rather quickly that sometimes being an adult is like being thrown into a fencing match ... blind. Adults don't have everything together. We learn the same way high-schoolers or even younger kids learn. We are basically bigger kids with more experience. No magic touch. No book of answers.
Finding friends was one of my top priorities and one of the most daunting tasks I had to face coming to Pepperdine University. I feared that people might judge me or talk about me behind my back or god forbid, not let me sit with them at lunch. Let me tell you, while you do still find tiny parts of this at any college, this is NOT high school. To that I say, "Amen"! I found a great group of friends my very first week of orientation, and even have the original group chat still up and running. These people are the ones I hope to see and will expect to see at every major life event or even small insignificant thing that happens in my life. I already feel like I've known these kids for years, and can confidently say that they will be lifelong friends of mine. They know I will be there for them whenever they need anything and will gladly do whatever it takes to help them out.
College wasn't really what I thought it was going to be. I, like most others, have based my preconceived ideas of college based on cringe worthy rom-com's or ABC family shows. College to me is a place of amazing opportunity and stimulation for not only your mind, but your heart and soul. I am challenged daily by my professors, by my peers, and by my course material. Yes, waking up at 7 a.m. for an 8 a.m. sucks, but when I am out by 11:30 every day, I feel like a free woman. The independence is insanely gratifying and can mess your sleep schedule up if you don't control it. You are exposed to the world and the endless possibilities for you if you just go after them. College is a place where you can truly be yourself, and not worry if everyone is going to like you because you'll find someone who's not identical, but shares so many of the amazing qualities that make you YOU. College is one of the best decisions I've ever made in my life, I can't wait to see where these next four years will take me.
