Hey Friend,
Congratulations! You just survived your first college finals week. Let that sink in. All the stress, all the tears, all the anxiety — it's over. Maybe you consumed way too much coffee over the past seven (or so) days, and maybe you only managed to get a combined number of 18 hours of sleep over the entire week, but hey — you made it! Go take a hot bath and then make some hot cocoa. Pamper yourself because you absolutely deserve it!
Now, not only have you survived finals, but you also just completed your very first semester of college. How does that feel? Rewind to exactly 16 weeks ago when you stepped foot onto campus and breathed your first breath of college life. At that very moment, you had no idea what was ahead of you. The world was yours - and it still is.
Over the past 16 weeks, you went to 48 Mon./Wed./Fri. classes, and 32 Tues./Thurs./ classes... well, who are we kidding - you tried to go to as many as you could, but hey, we college kids need a break sometimes! For 16 weeks you learned things you never thought you would. College classes opened up a whole new world of learning for you and I know that you absolutely cannot wait to keep learning more when next semester comes.
Who would have thought that during those 16 weeks you would meet some of the most amazing people with whom you would later become really great friends! These people took care of you when you passed out at the pregame, cried with you when you missed home, laughed with you when you made a fool of yourself in front of that guy you like from class, and calmed you down when you unnecessarily stressed over your calculus class. These are the people that make you so excited to go back to school just because you miss them so much.
You also probably didn't realize that along the way you would lose some people in your life whom you thought would be there forever - whether they were friends or family members. What you need to realize is that God has the ultimate plan and that change is a part of life. If you take one thing away from this semester, it should be that change is good. Change means that you are growing up. You are not the same person you were when you stepped onto campus that very first day of orientation, and this definitely is not a bad thing. You have become stronger - and braver - and more intelligent - and more loving - and anything else you can possibly think of!
You did it, friend. You are now a second-semester freshman in college. Take this winter break to spend time with family and friends from home. Treat yourself for the next 6 weeks, because soon enough, you'll be back on campus, eventually studying for the next set of finals. Congratulations again!
Love,
A Friend
