To the university that changed my life,

Thank you. There aren't enough words to thank you for the impact you have made on my life, from the moment I walked on campus for the first time as a high school junior, until now coming back for my third year of college. I never expected that a university could have such a large impact on my life. The lessons I have learned and the memories I have made are all thanks to you. Without my university I wouldn’t be the person I am today. This letter could go on for hundreds of pages if I mentioned every reason I am thankful for my university, but I will cut it down to my top three.

Thank you for letting me be myself.

Coming into college, I thought I knew who I was. I mean I was the girl that loved sports and never played. I was the smart girl and I had a lot of friends. I thought I knew what I wanted to do with my life and where I was going. I can honestly say now that I didn’t even know the beginning of who I was. In the past two years, I have grown so much and I owe it all to my university. I have never felt judged for the person I am and I have always felt like I belonged.

Thank you for pushing me out of my comfort zone.

I’m from a small town. I went to a small high school where I knew everyone and never lived more than five minutes from my MawMaw. College was the scariest adventure I ever began, but I did it. I’m conquering it. I was pushed past my comfort zone and it has taught me how strong I truly am. In the past, I never thought I would be doing the things I am now, involved in what I am now, or fulfilling the dreams I am now. I have learned that nothing worthwhile comes easy and that’s OK! Life truly begins outside of your comfort zone and my university pushed me all the way out.

Thank you for giving me the tools to be my best self.

My university has given me every opportunity to better myself. I know that in the future, when I succeed, I will look back and know where it all started. I will look back and know that the friends I made and the professors I had changed my life forever. Each person at my university has taught me something. From joining my sorority, to meeting my mentors, to giving me opportunities to work in the field I love, I will never be able to thank this school for all the tools it has provided for me.

College is a scary place. It’s the first time you are away from home and have no one to tell you what to do. It really is a brand new chapter in life where you truly do get to start over. You walk in with all these big dreams not really knowing if anyone will actually believe in you. I have found the people that believe in my craziest dreams. From the second I walked on campus, I knew that it was going to be my future home. However, I didn’t realize that the things that happened on that campus would change me as a person and change my life forever. I will never be able to thank my university, the people I’ve met and the people that have helped me enough. At first I was a part of the university, my university has become one of the most important parts of me.