Dear Senior In College,
I bet you are feeling an amalgamation of emotions right now. You couldn't be more excited to be back with your best friends at your second home, yet you're feeling some anxiousness knowing this year is going to fly by. You wanted back to school to arrive so quickly, yet now fear that now it has begun, time will not stop. Take a deep breath and just learn to enjoy each and every moment.
I would be lying to you if I said I didn't feel these same emotions. I look back on my three years at school and cannot fathom how quickly they have passed by. Reminiscing on those incredible days as a small and somewhat awkward freshman has shown me how much I have grown in these past three years. I have found that sophomore and junior year allow you to find yourself a little more, grant you opportunities to discover your passions and of course, leaves room for various social activities. You really start to see yourself shape up as a person on your campus. You are no longer one body in the sea of your total undergraduate admissions number, but a human being who is giving back to the institution you get to call home.
Senior year can seem quite scary, with thoughts about figuring out life away from this second home. The rush to find a job, apply for graduate school, and simply figure out this distant, yet not so far away part of life called the 'real world' occupies our time and our mind. You go from having everything you could ever need within a five-mile radius to being surrounded by practices we became unfamiliar with, a new structure of life, and new people to become friends with. It is too difficult, and simply a choice, to not want to imagine life without our close buds by our side because we know that there is more effort that will need to be made to maintain these friendships. No one said it wasn't worth it, but the simplicity of walking down the street to a close pal's apartment disappears. Instead, you think of the bigger picture. Who is going to be in my life for the long haul? Who will be at my future wedding? Which of these friends are going to be the godparents of my kids? Etc. It's surreal to imagine our life on a much bigger scale, and with that comes the thought of losing touch with acquaintances we always loved the company of. It makes us wonder what is so wonderful about senior year when all of this is on our plate to worry about.
These are the fears every senior is facing, yet there is so much to celebrate, believe it or not. From your first day of classes to the day you walk across that stage, I challenge you to focus on the 24 hours that are put before you. Make of them what you will. Study hard, do your work and strive for greatness, but don't forget to have some fun along the way. Go out on a Tuesday night when you have an 8 a.m. class the next morning. Go to a new bar you have never been to before. Cheer on your sports teams. Go on adventures. Make new friends wherever you go. Because guess what? You only have so many more days to conquer these tasks, conquer these fears.
We can sit and worry about the day we move on from our undergraduate life, or we can make the most of it. Let's be honest, seizing each day and filling it with the people and things we love dearly will provide us with such a full heart. You don't want to look back on your four years and start any sentences with, "I wish I...". Embrace each moment and know that the ups and the downs have and will shape you and your character. Enjoy it while you can, and never look back.
