Dear Freshmen year,

It’s me. An upcoming sophomore.

Thank you for the memories that I’m going to carry with me for a lifetime.

Thank you for putting some the best people in my life.

Thank you for giving me new eventual bridesmaids.

Thank you for giving me new opportunities.

Thank you for giving me new experiences.

Thank you for helping me expand my knowledge.

Thank you for showing me that I can be independent.

Thank you for helping me grow into adulthood.

Thank you for a great year.

Freshmen year has been pretty great but it wasn’t all good.

That doesn’t mean that I’m not grateful for the bad too.

Thank you for putting me through some hard times.

I learned how to keep going when all I wanted was to break down.

Thank you for putting some not so great people in my path.

It taught me how to pick out toxic relationships and how to distance myself.

Thank you for putting me in some sticky situations with guys.

It taught me how to stand up for myself.

It also showed me that I know what I want and am not afraid to tell someone what I don’t want.

Thank you for showing me the power of letting go.

I know now that I can’t dwell on the bad things because it doesn’t do anything but hurt me more.

Thank you for keeping me humble.

I know there is always more to learn and there is always going to be someone who is smarter than me.

Thank you for keeping my mind open.

I learned that if I just stop and listen to others I have a lot to be gained.

Thank you for putting people in my life with different political views than my own.

It taught me how to handle that situation with class and how to see something from someone else’s point of view.

Thank you for letting me put my foot in my mouth a couple of times.

I learned to be more aware of what I am saying.

Thak you for keeping things interesting.

I know life won’t be a breeze so college shouldn’t be either.

But most of all,

Thank you for giving me friends that it made it hard to come home for the summer.

Friends that you miss after just a few hours are the best kind of friends to have and you gave me lots of them.

Yours truly,

A sophomore