I’ve almost been at college for a month now and it already feels like a complete whirlwind of completing each round of homework just moments before it’s due. It’s stressful, and it allows little to no time for socialization or anything in the category of ‘fun’. It leads to many (many) late nights with sub-par assignments being handed in that could have been crafted much more carefully than they actually were.

Now I don't know about you, but this isn't exactly the kind of college life I would like to continue to lead. I want to have time to spend with friends watching our favorite tv show or crying over the latest romantic movies. I want to be able to take up those random outings to Sonic, Goodwill, or the bowling alley. I want to make memories that aren't surrounded by the weight of stress and of school and of life.

I want to breathe easy, to take more than a moment to stop and smell the flowers.

So, I’m changing my ways.

Instead of waking up late every morning, scrolling through social media lazily for what feels like forever, I’m going to push myself to get up and around to do the things I always think to myself that I wish I had more time to do. If I want to do my hair, put on my make-up and wear a really cute outfit that day, then I will. Instead of rushing around 30 minutes before class starts, I’ll get up earlier so that I can make myself a cup of coffee and wake up slow, as I am not a morning person and without coffee, I am nothing but a shell of a human being.

I also want to spend more time in the word with the Lord. I started a devotional in Proverbs that I really enjoy but I never seem to have time for. Truth is, there's always time for God. I had bible study with the girls on my floor in my dorm the other day and the topic was brought up of spending time with God. We can do it every day, and it doesn't always have to be at the same time for the same amount of time. God will use and bless your time with Him, no matter how long it is or even if you're not feeling it at the time. So even if I have piles of never ending homework, I can find time whether it's in the morning, late into the night or during a break between classes. There is no excuse for me to not spend time with the Lord throughout the course of the day, nor is it possible as I have come to discover in the past week.

Lastly, I want to have time to spend with friends, to hang out and have time to explore every nook and cranny of Shawnee. To go on long drives and learn everything about each other, our fears, our hopes, and dreams, our goals in life. To waste our time in Braum’s eating ice cream and laughing over the newest snap chat filter. I want to live the life of a college student who savors every moment, soaks it all up, even forget to take a picture for Instagram because I was having such a good time and I couldn't be bothered.

These are the changes that I want to make in my life because I’m sick and tired of all of the ‘what if’s’ and the ‘if only’s’. I want to go out and live to the fullest with no regrets. I’m giving a makeover to the shy, quiet girl and turning her into a confident young woman who isn't afraid to speak her mind. That’s my goal this year, to become that girl and to be a go-getter, not just someone who waits for things to come to her.