Even before going to college, I knew that it would be a means for me to grow. Being somewhat shy and quiet all my life, I was prepared for the challenges of going to school away from my home because I knew that I would come back with different qualities. Now as a junior in college, I can look at my life now and see a difference from my life before attending Longwood University; for that, I owe a lot to Longwood.
Because my family and home is nearly three hours from Longwood, I don't have the luxury to go home if I forgot something important or need to ask my mom to show me how to fill out some paperwork. Of course, I can call my mom, but I've learned that I am capable of doing (or trying) many things on my own. I hate calling offices on the phone and asking for help. Guess what? This is something that I'm going to have to do for the rest of my life, so I'm glad that I get to start doing so at Longwood. Every time I've had to call an office at Longwood, I have been treated in the best way; this just encourages me to keep reaching out when I can't do things on my own. There's no better place to learn how to "adult" than Longwood University.
Longwood has given me the ability to try things and step out of my comfort zone in a comfortable way. I used to be so afraid of something having a bad outcome. I had way too many reservations about things. All this changed for me because of the great people that are on this campus. I have friends who push me to excel and encourage me to do things (even if they don't realize they are helping me tremendously). Now, I think about trying things and being a part of organizations and events that a year ago, I couldn't imagine myself being involved in. I know that I have people on my side, and it's an amazing blessing to be able to say that.
I have grown so much as a person in the two years that I have been at Longwood, and I am so excited for the growth that is to come.