Now that we’re officially a few weeks into the new year, I’d like to reflect on the crazy, exciting, anxious year that was my 2016. Throughout the course of the past year, I graduated high school, moved three hours away for college and now I am starting to explore what life in the “real world” looks like. I’d be lying if I said 2016 was the best year of my life thus far but it also wasn’t that far from it.

Being on your own teaches you a lot about yourself. When I lived at home, I never felt lonely or bored just being at home doing nothing. Now that I live in a dorm and am always surrounded by friends, I learned I don’t like being alone. I enjoy being in the company of my friends constantly, whether it be having a meaningful conversation with them or just sitting on their floor in silence while they study at night.

While away at college, I’ve found some of the best friends I’ve had in my entire life. They truly taught me how to realize what a good friend is. Not only am I there for them but they exert equal effort into being a good friend towards me, which only a handful of my close friends have ever demonstrated before.

I learned that sharing a tiny dorm room with two other girls isn’t as bad as I once imagined it would be. They’ve become two of my best friends and I don’t go a single day without receiving a "Bitmoji" text from one of them and a Snapchat to continue our streak from the other one. Find yourself roommates that won’t judge you for your bad habits and who love you at your worst and college will be so enjoyable.

Moving onto relationships, 2016 took me by surprise. Life has a crazy way of sending someone so important to you when you least expect it. For the first time, you begin to feel comfortable and have your feelings reassured with the words they communicate to you, to only be shaken by their true colors in the end. Spoiler alert, the you in those sentences refers to me.

I realized I deserve more than uncertainty and ignorance from someone who claimed to care about me so much. However, that someone wasn’t worth my time and energy in the first place, and won’t be in the future either. In 2017, I am making it a priority to love myself and know my self-worth before even considering letting someone else into my life in that way. As they say, you must love yourself before you can love someone else and I don’t think there’s anything more accurate than that statement.

I hope to continue to enjoy my second semester of freshmen year with my close friends by my side and embark on new adventures and embrace our newfound spontaneity. Thank you 2016, for showing me the ups and downs created by distance from home. Thank you for showing me the value of a good friend. Thank you for opening up my eyes to what self-worth truly means. Here’s to new beginnings and the closure of another chapter; bring on 2017.