“New beginnings"...
...That is one phrase that never truly had meaning until the day that I stepped foot into my freshman dorm for the first time. I felt a vast array of emotions that day: nervous, excited, melancholy, doubtful, optimistic. My life as I knew it was changed forever, and I suddenly took on a new identity. No matter how terrified I was, this was my life and there was no turning back. I was beginning to question if my decision to go to college away from home was the right decision. Although being thrown into this strange, new world known as college could appear to be the most terrifying thing that one ever had to do in their 18 years of life, there is something oh so refreshing about it. You throw away everything you have ever known, and you get a chance to start over. The future is in your hands, and it is brighter than you have ever imagined.
For a solid two or three years of my life, I felt stuck in a rut and I couldn’t dig myself out of it. The same routine, day in and day out, bored me. Life no longer excited me. All I knew was that I wanted to leave my home town and start over... With new people, new adventures, new perspectives. It was time for me to stop running from my fears, and start embracing them. Not going away to college might have been "comfortable" and "easy" for me, but I would have been doing myself a disservice. By avoiding situations that terrify us, it would not be possible for us to grow and prosper as individuals. Growth requires change. Going away to college has helped me realize that nothing in this life is carved in stone, and forcing yourself out of your comfort zone could be undoubtedly the best decision you have made in your entire life. I am no longer afraid anymore, and all it took was one decision. Maybe, just maybe, the key to happiness was in our pockets all along, and we were just too blind to see it. It’s time that we open our eyes, and stop allowing fear to paralyze us.
Have you ever wanted to do something yet there was a tiny voice inside your head telling you that you can't?
Ignore it. It doesn't control you. YOU control you. Take the risk. Trust your instincts, and just let go. It could impact your life for the better or possibly the worst, but you'll never know if you continue to allow fear to control your life. Think of the one thing that terrifies you the most, and just do it. What are you waiting for? Tomorrow isn’t guaranteed to anybody. It’s never too late to start again. Live with no regrets. Just live. Don’t ever let fear prevent you from living.
What is it that college has taught me, you may ask? It's okay to be scared, but it's not okay to let that hold you back. This life is only as beautiful as you allow it to be, remember that.“For what it’s worth: It’s never too late to be whoever you want to be. I hope you live a life you’re proud of, and if you find that you’re not, I hope you have the strength to start over.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald
