Your parents will warn you to be careful, tell you to have fun, and inevitably worry about you, but they can’t prepare you for everything - neither can I. 

These are 10 things I wish I would have known before I began the journey of freshman year. 

-The world around you moves on: It is easy to get lost in the realm of the Promiseland. However, it is important to recognize that your sister is going to get taller when you are away at school, you are going to miss your dad’s big promotion and your grandma’s 80th birthday bash. It might hurt a little in your heart, but it is normal for your family and friends at home to have a life too.

-Don’t forget to call your mom: When something funny happens in your day, don’t forget you have parents too. They want to know when your professor called you Nathaniel instead of Natalie. They might send you a care package or clean your room at home so much that it seems as though it's being featured in a museum. This is happening simply because they miss you. Show them some love and shoot them a text every so often. 

-Hyvee Chinese is acceptable for your birthday dinner: No one is kidding when they say, ‘you’ll be living off microwavable noodles and peanut butter sandwiches’. Being broke is a norm. It doesn’t matter where you come from, or who you are; having a twenty dollar bill in your wallet might actually convince your brain that you are rich. Seriously.

-Being nice is easy: Hold the door open for the stranger behind you. Buy a hotbox cookie cake for the girl on your floor who cries in the hall because she’s homesick. Tell homegirl whose boyfriend just broke up with her that she’s having a good hair day. Be kind - it’s the easiest and most rewarding way to be. 

-You will do things you regret: For example, eating El Rancho's always tempting chicken nachos after 2 a.m. or making out with that guy who wears party beads to class. Blow it off; it’s all going to be OK. One of Hannah Montana’s greatest lyrics is “Everybody makes mistakes, everybody has those days." Just don’t let those days be every day. 

-Time will slip away from you: Take advantage of every day you spend on campus. Meet people, go out, act neighborly. Talking to a stranger in your class is not actually as weird as you think. Sitting in a lecture hall of 300 people and not talking to single soul is weird. Social interaction is OK. 

-Think before you drink: Eating dinner makes a difference, drinking water before you pass out is necessary (even if you are drinking out of the sink), you will never regret taking off your makeup before bed, and most importantly don’t forget you are here to attend classes. Your attendance for your Thursday morning 8 a.m. is more important than your perfect attendance for the weekly wine Wednesday. Bringing your study guide to Shots Around The World does not count as studying. Set your alarm, hydrate, and make your parents proud. 

- Netflix is a lifestyle: Watching 3 episodes of Dexter doesn’t seem like such a bad idea until you remember you have a discussion board assignment due in the next 20 minutes. Although Netflix is sublime, don’t let it consume you. Save that British documentary for a rainy day and a bag of Flaming Hot Cheetos.  

-You won’t appreciate how fantastic your life is until the year nears an end: Soak it all in, every last breath, every night, every photo; it all counts. Just as high school flashed by, so does college. Document it, participate, and love every second of it. Throughout the year don’t forget to slow down and recognize how amazing your life is. Meet the fun people, the quiet ones, and the crazy ones, because you never know who could end up finding you in the middle of the lawn snoring at 4 a.m. or who’s going to swipe you into the dining hall for 3 days when you lose your student ID. These are going to be the best four years of your life, but you have to make them.