Going into my freshman year. of college I didn't really know what to expect. I knew that my life was going to change and that I was going to change as well.
Moving away from home wasn't as bad as I thought as it would be, I have always been quite the adventurous type. What was difficult though was not knowing a single soul at the university I was attending, so I decided to rush a sorority. Joining Greek Life has probably been one of the greatest things to happen to me. There were so many great girls that I instantly became friends with during Rush Week because we were all struggling with the same thing, trying to find where we fit in on campus. At the end of Rush Week I accepted a bid from the Alpha Sigma Alpha sorority.
About a month into school is when the reality of everything had finally set in. Trying to figure out a decent study pattern, managing a social life along with schoolwork, and making sure to keep eating. I know it may sound crazy but there were definitely times where I forgot to eat because of how busy I was. Within the first few months of my first semester I learned that I wasn't really one that could be alone too often. Mostly because I would get bored or distracted from doing work. Along with that I finally understood why every college student trash talks their dining halls. Sometimes it was hard to understand how those employees thought that the food they were serving was edible.
It seemed as if my first semester was like a movie, it was almost too good to be true. I had a pretty solid group of friends, my classes were going really well, and most importantly I was exceeding my parents expectations. Besides all of the academics and such, the parties had most definitely lived up to my expectations. People crowded into the Frat Houses jumping around to the point where the floor almost caved in while screaming the words to Dixieland Delight by Alabama. Not to mention the tailgates got pretty interesting too. Just picture a field about the size of a little store front parking lot packed with students, staff, and members of the city all enjoying the pregame festivities. Random locals would just come up to you and asked if you needed water or a snack. To me this was different because I wasn't used to the small town southern hospitality, but it was greatly appreciated.
Me (left) and Kali (right) at the parents weekend tailgate before the Blazers vs. West Alabama football game.
Coming back from winter break I was so excited to start my second semester of college. I had established my place on campus, gotten used to the not so good dining hall food, was involved with my sorority, and the homesickness was finally out of my system. Just like my first semester everything had still felt like a dream. But then the spring semester took quite the unexpected turn.
COVID-19 became the one thing that everyone was talking about. It sort of came out of nowhere and didn't really have anyone nervous for quite some time. A lot of my friends (including myself) just thought that this was just another virus outbreak and wasn't super serious. Flash forward to the week before spring break, everyone was so excited to have a week off from school that would most likely be spent on a beach in Florida.
I knew that I was going back home to Ft.Lauderdale, Florida which is THE spring break destination. To say that I was pumped up was an understatement. But that's when it all took a turn downhill. Universities around the country were shutting down for the rest of the semester, forcing their students to finish their courses online. On my drive back home, that's when I received the email from my University that they would be shutting down for another week. A few days later is when everyone found out we wouldn't be allowed back on campus and that we would finish the year out online. Many emotions flooded my brain and left me feeling numb.
Just like that my freshman year was over. It was really bad timing for EVERYONE. There were so many things that a lot of students were looking forward to. Athletes couldn't finish out their seasons, study abroad trips were canceled, etc. I was finally acclimated to living the college life, and within the blink of an eye I realized I was going to be living at home again until the fall.
These times may be hard, and we don't know how things will end or if it ever will. But one thing I can say is that I'm forever thankful and blessed to have made some incredible memories, learned important life lessons while gaining a tremendous amount of knowledge. Most importantly, I've learned that we shouldn't take the things we have in life for granted, we may never know when it'll end.
