Dear high school seniors,

This time last year, I had just made the decision to go to an out-of-state university and was terrified for the upcoming change and goodbyes. Prom, graduation, all the lasts in your high school career are soon approaching. The last goal, the last touchdown, the last pass, the last note, the last dance. The last time in that uniform- whether it's your athletic jersey or your not-very-attractive orchestra/band/choir formal uniform. It's all coming to an end.

Enjoy your friends in high school. Sure you're probably not going to see most of them ever again, but don't dwell too much on all the sad endings and focus on where you are right now. Enjoy your mom's cooking and her hugs. Enjoy your dog waiting at the door to greet you when you come home from school, and enjoy having your own room. Enjoy being carefree. Enjoy the football games, enjoy the "stress" because the definition of stress is about to multiply ten fold. None of that is gonna happen regularly again for at least a few years. You're about to take the first baby step into adulthood.

Life is about to take a really sharp turn into a new direction. Everything from here on out is unknown. If you chose an out-of-state school, then you only get to go home a couple of times a year. When all your friends who are natives to the state you moved to get to go home for a weekend, you'll be stuck on campus wondering if you made the right decision being so far away from your family and all you knew. You'll spend nights wishing you could just be in the comfort of your family and home. It's really hard.

It's not all that bad, though. It's fantastic, in fact. You make real friends- friends that you hang out with by choice and not because you see them everyday in classes. You're still not really an adult, so there's not a whole lot of pressure, but you get more independence than you've ever had before. You get to experience new places, new things, people who are totally opposite from you, and a fresh start in life. You don't have to take as many required classes and get to learn about what you want to learn! If you're an arts student, no more math classes you don't need, and if you're a math major, you get to take even harder more in-depth mathematics classes!

You get to really be yourself in college, too. Nobody really cares about how popular you were or want to be, or if you repeated an outfit, or anything superficial that seemed so important in high school. Freak out over Pokemon, cry over a chick flick, eat as much as you want or work out as much as you want people will appreciate you being you more than you being someone you're not. What I've noticed in college is that everyone is more authentic. Nobody is living under the pressure to give off a certain image unless if they're putting that pressure on themselves. So don't. Be unapologetic about who you are and you will find some of the best friends and opportunities.

All this to say, enjoy your last year of childhood and get ready for the ride of your life.

Sincerely,

A college student