College, or as I like to call it, “The Era of Pseudo-Adulthood,” can be a troubling time. It is a segment of our lives soaked through with the word "change". Each year is drastically different from the one before it, and we are constantly trying to fit in, make money, get good grades and manage our time well. It isn’t easy for anyone. It is also a time of preparation for our future. Many questions can surface in our minds and blossom into other ideas and wonders as we let them fester. One of the questions that have been buzzing around my head lately is “are you alone?”

I do not just mean, “am I alone?” I mean, are you, are we as people, alone in this world? Our own consciousness is both so limited and unlimited at the same time. We are but one mind, one body, from the beginning until the end of our time, but this mind is also vast. As we traverse this world and this life through time, are we doing it by ourselves?

I know this is not entirely accurate or true. I know we spark relationships and meld friendships and twist lives until we have become intertwined with many others, whether through memories or through lifelong interactions. Yet, at the end of many days, I have to wonder if we are meant to do this journey alone or not. Sometimes, you feel lonely. Even when surrounded by good company or when walking through a crowded quad, you can feel the weight of loneliness like a weight on your being. This has to mean something, right? Maybe not.

Just this morning I was listening to the new album, "I’m Alone, No You’re Not", from a band of sisters called Joseph. The title comes from a lyric of one of their songs. It really resonated with this sort of perpetual feeling of being existentially alone. It reminded me that we are not really alone, so long as we allow ourselves to see what is around us. We have those friends and relationships filled with love and support out there. We have resources available to us if we need some help or just someone to talk to who will readily listen and offer advice if we care to have it. Whatever we need, it is there. One must simply remember to look up once in a while. In Joseph’s song, one of the members sings, “I’m alone,” while another sister sings, “no, you’re not.” Sometimes, we need someone else to remind this to us. We need to be woken up from our sleep to face reality and let the light in.

They say that at the end of the day, all you really have is yourself. This is true, but during the entirety of that day, you have everyone and everything around you. You can find the support and encouragement that you need regardless of what is going on in your life or in your mind. We do not have to do this thing alone.