I came into this first semester of my sophomore year with my expectations as high as my bed was lofted freshman year, which was very high. I knew this year was going to be different, in some ways for the better and some for the worse. Freshmen don't realize how lucky they are until they're living in the sophomore slums far away from basically everything, especially Dunkin.

Slumming it isn't so bad if you're doing it with your best friend. Yes, the room may be far smaller than it was last year and our lights hardly allow us to see anything very well, but nothing beats living with someone just like you. We can go to bed whenever, watch the same movies and TV shows without issue, and share yummy food. Without her as my roomie, I would not have made it through this semester without ripping my hair out, which I've come close to pretty much every day.

Classes were absolutely brutal this semester. Nineteen credits was an undertaking I didn't realize would kill more than just my GPA, but my mental health too. Everything I took this semester was a challenge, and I had to many face things on my own without anyone to coddle me. I had help along the way with many classes, but even that help wasn't always reliable. Tutoring is great when you have the right person who understands how to teach you, while others only confuse you. In the end, I'd rather fail doing it to the best of my ability then have someone just do it for me so I never actually learn anything.

Not only am I saying goodbye to the hardest classes I've taken, but I've also said goodbye to toxic people. Certain people I met as a freshman were just those first-year friends everyone makes, and once you find your niche, you just drift apart, and that's totally fine. Others just became too toxic to be around. A friendship that you feel isn't right should not be kept. I've found that by removing myself from a friendship that was just not working has helped my mental health in more ways than I can explain. An entire weight gets lifted off your shoulders, no more dark shadows are there to follow you around.

In the darkness there is light. I got very close to people I'm proud to call my best friends and found someone who makes me smile no matter what mood I'm in. I also joined the sorority of my dreams and can't wait to see what it has in store for me. There is always a light at the end of the tunnel. Yes, my grades are basically in the gutter, but I went out trying my absolute best, and in college, that's all you can really do. Next semester, I truly am going to bounce back. I'm going to push myself to do as well as I can, and not let anyone say or do anything to stop me.

Goodbye first semester, you won't be missed. Well, maybe just a little.