After being at the University of Florida for a year I have already started appreciating the school less. After some reflecting, I remembered how lucky we are to be able to go to such a beautiful and highly-acclaimed school. If you need a reminder of how lucky we are to be Gators, here are a few things to remember when you might be taking your school for granted.

5. We have a beautiful campus.

Walking to class is a stressful time when you are trying to remember if you did your assignment or you have a quiz. Next time you walk across campus, take in the views. UF has one of the most beautiful and historic campuses and we often over-look that. University Auditorium, for example, was built in 1925 and there are many buildings that are even older than that all across campus.

4. Everything you need is in Gainesville.

We are lucky to be in a town that is built around the university. Many schools that are in smaller towns do not have access to all the things we do. It is only a five minute drive to Publix for a pub sub or to Target for anything you could need.

3. We balance school and fun.

Gainesville has a great night life every night of the week, but we also have state of the art libraries on campus. You are always able to find a group to go out with or to study with and no one is judgmental on which one you choose to do on your Friday night.

2. Our restaurants are amazing.

When I came to UF I had no clue I was surrounded by so many great restaurants. Everyone knows where the above photo is from (Leonardo's By The Slice of course), but we have so many more local restaurants for any type of food you can imagine. We also have many coffee shops that are perfect for studying at.

1. We really are a community.

The Gator Nation truly is everywhere and it will be there for it's students and alumni no matter what. Seeing what UF students and faculty did in situations like Hurricane Matthew shows that our schools cares for Florida. I am so proud to be a student at the University of Florida and you should be too.