During my time at LIU Post I've been met by a lot of people's judgments on how strange and untypical my choice to not go away to college is. Most people I've encountered don't give it a second thought, but there's still a generous amount of people that look at me like I have multiple heads when I tell them I stayed home for school. Now that my brother is about to start his college career here as well, people have the same thoughts directed towards him and also my parents because now both of their kids will still be home. I've had just about enough of this, so it's time to clear the air on this subject; it's okay to not go away to college.

Staying home for college doesn't make you a bad person, and it doesn't mean you're weird or anything even slightly related to that. It's not for everyone. Personally, I wasn't ready to go away. With my anxiety and my issues with transitions it was important for me to have at least something stay the same when everything else in my life was changing. When I went to college the only thing that stayed the same was where and who I lived with; everything else was different so it provided a comfort for me. If I had gone away my anxiety and panic attacks would have 100 percent gotten the best of me and I would've been home after two weeks. Now that my anxiety has calmed down, and especially since I love my program and have made so many wonderful friends, I don't regret my decision for a second. Plus, it's nice to be able to eat real food instead of campus food for every meal, see my family on a daily basis, and sleep on an actual mattress. My situation isn't the case for everyone who chooses to stay home, but whatever your reason is there's nothing wrong with choosing to not go away.

Here's the other thing. You can still have the "full college experience" if you don't go away, it just takes a little more effort. It's sometimes a little hard to not get in your car and just go home when your last class is over, and I've been guilty of this a lot of times, but going to events on campus is a great way to make friends and make your experience even better. I went to a bunch of my friend's recitals last semester and it helped me to become friends with a bunch of people in the department because a lot of the same people go to all these things. And honestly, if you're making friends and you're on campus a lot, then you are having the full experience. Sleeping in a dorm room doesn't automatically mean you're making the most of your college experience. It's what you're involved in, the events you go to, and the friends you make that help define your college experience. Because, honestly, you can lock yourself in your dorm room very easily and not interact with people and BAM, then you're not getting the "full college experience". It goes both ways.

I'm only halfway done with my time at Post, and I have so many things to look forward to in the coming years. Making my friendships even stronger, supporting my friends at their recitals and off campus performances, student teaching, putting on my own recital next fall, the countless performance opportunities that will come my way within my choral ensembles, and probably more that I'm not even aware of right now. With all these good things on the way how could I even be the slightest bit regretful about the path I chose? I hope that those of you that also chose to stay home don't regret your decision because someone planted the idea in your head that you're wrong and that you're "supposed to go away to school". Don't let anyone undermine your education and the path you chose for the beginning of the rest of your life. There's a reason you're on the road you're on and it doesn't mean you're not normal if you chose to stay home. There's a lot of dignity and maturity in realizing that you didn't want to go away or that you weren't ready. It takes more to push yourself and follow your instincts than to do what's "expected" of you even if you don't actually want to. Never forget that. Not going away to school is perfectly normal and okay and you're on your way to great things in your life.