When I was a junior in high school, I was set on going to college out of state. I thought that in order to be independent and on my own, that meant that I needed to get as far away from my home as possible. When someone would ask me where I wanted to go to school, I had a couple of ideas in my mind, but nothing was set in stone. When I became a senior and it was actually time to start applying to school, reality struck me. I quickly realized how hard it would be to not only move out and be on my own in a new place but to not have easy access to go home if I felt like I needed a break. You see, I had gone to the same school my whole life, only lived in two houses my whole childhood and was surrounded by the same people as well. Change was something that I wasn't familiar with and that's when I realized that pushing myself too far out of my comfort zone at that moment probably wasn't the best idea.

This realization made me choose a college that was far enough away from my home to make me learn how to be independent, but close enough to make me not feel homesick. I liked knowing that I had the option to go see my family without having to catch a plane or a train. Even then, I can remember how terrified I was moving into my dorm and meeting my roommate in person for the first time. Learning how to live on your own without the support or help of your family is something that I wasn't used to. Although college makes it easy for you to live on your own, there are so many decisions and responsibilities that come along with the experience. You no longer have people telling you what you should and shouldn't do. You're in charge of deciding whether or not you want to get up and go to your 8:15 a.m class or if you want to skip it. You decide what you eat, what you do with your free time, how late and when you hang out with friends.

Going to college is such an eye-opening experience because you are responsible for yourself and your decisions are going to be the ones that help shape you into the person you'll be in the future. The best way to be successful in your four years of college is learning how to live a balanced life. You can have fun while still being responsible. Get involved on your campus, join clubs, greek life or sports. Make the most out of your experience because these are the years that we get the privilege to make mistakes and learn what we like or don't like.

Now that I'm going into my junior year, I couldn't be more ecstatic. I finally found what I want to do with my future and I'm excited and interested in the courses I am going to be taking this fall. I'm more than ready to move into my apartment with three of my best friends to take on the year. Although sometimes it's hard, I'm always going to remind myself that it is possible to have fun, remain happy and be successful at whatever I put my mind to.