It's pretty much impossible to go one day in college without hearing some girls' stories of going out the night before with their friends and the drama that happened or the crazy shenanigans that they were involved in.
They want the most trendy shoes, the perfect boyfriend or the most authentic-looking fake I.D. I get it. It's college. We're in our 20's — most of us and this is what people our age are supposed to do. Some people live for these kinds of things that, after college, they'll say taught them more about life than anything they ever learned during a lecture.
I, however, have never been one of those people, and I hope I never am.
I hope I never lose sight of myself enough that I become one of them. This is not saying that anyone who lives their life this way is a bad person. Some of the people that I enjoy seeing and talking to the most during the day are those types of people. They're compassionate and friendly people. They're usually outgoing, which makes them pretty easy to talk to.
I am a proud introvert. I like that I find comfort in my own thoughts. I am not lonely when I go home after work with no plans for the rest of the evening. I like the Saturday mornings when I wake up late and have no plans to meet up with a group of people later on in the day.
I've wondered if people that I talk to about how I spent the weekend or my lack of plans on a Friday night think that I'm wrong for not wanting to live the stereotypical college lifestyle. I've never felt judgement from others about it, but I have found myself, on occasion, thinking that I'm doing something wrong.
I'm not. It's okay that I would rather get ahead on school work over the weekend and be able to take some evenings to relax during the week than go out with friends. I'm proud of the fact that I've almost made it halfway through college and I have not changed who I am.
I was told by teachers in high school that college can be used as a time to re-invent yourself. Instead, I've become more proud of who I am than I had ever been before.
