College is hard, your life continuously changes each year, you meet literally hundreds of people, and you become a new person in the 4 or in my case 6 years of college. I learned that friendships are a lot harder when you're an adult, everyone gets busier and it's harder to maintain that time with the people who mean the most to you. That doesn't mean that friendships aren't worth having, but maintaining those friendships are important for you and for your friends that you surround yourself with. You learn that hard work is truly the only way to get what you want out of life, and sometimes you learn it the hard way. I know that my time in college has lead me to be more hardworking than I ever was as a high school student. In the past few years I've found a purpose and drive once I got involved in organizations that matter. This was something I never felt inclined to do in high school that has helped me become a more outspoken and passionate woman. The opportunities that are offered at OU are endless it seems like, and taking advantage of them has changed my life immeasurably. I was a lot more reserved as a teenage than I am now as a twenty something almost finished with college and I have many organizations on campus to thank for it. Camp Crimson was the first little taste of OU that I got as an incoming transfer student and it was one of the first places that I felt like I could be myself and most importantly not be judged for who I was. That little taste gave me the confidence to go after what I wanted to do. I got involved in multiple organizations like Sigma Phi Lambda, IGC Judicial Board, Encounter, Crimson Sweethearts, the Odyssey, and Camp Crimson as an SGL. Through these organizations and through my academics at OU I feel a lot more prepared to go out in the real world once May 2020 comes around. It makes me so excited to know that sooner rather than later I'll be able to take all I've learned out into the world and be able to impact the world around me.
Sheetal Tadiparty
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