We are Michigan Wolverines. Whether you believe it or not, that means a little something. And no, by that I don’t just mean that we are pros at ordering Pizza House at 2 am and experts at getting absolutely no work done on the second floor of the Ugli. I mean that our purpose here at this school extends far beyond the stereotypes that we enforce all too well.
We are smart. But not just smart; we are dedicated. Dedicated to this school, to the maize and blue (no matter how embarrassing it may be at times to admit), dedicated to never stepping on the block M on the Diag even if you’ve already taken your first blue book, dedicated to spending long nights in the library actually studying for an exam or writing the paper that counts for half your grade. We understand what it means to earn a spot here and work for what you deserve.
Give up? Basically a foreign concept to us. We come from a long line of Wolverines who made it clear that failure is merely a mean of motivation. The next time you fail a quiz or do poorly on an assignment, remember this: You are literally amongst the leaders and the best, and you were hand chosen to be here.
The University of Michigan is Currently No. 29 on the US News college rankings list. In the entirety of the United States, our school is one of the best to exist. But of course, you don’t need to hear this. You already know just how prestigious and renowned Michigan is; that’s why you chose it. And every day that you spend here, mastering whatever it is that you’re studying, you are becoming one of the elite that survives this university.
If you take a second to stop and think about everything this place has given you, I assure you that you'll be shocked to realize just how fortunate we really are. Sure, at times everything seems overwhelming and I’ll admit that I’m guilty of complaining about my professors and cursing this school - not just for its sports team, but for the heavy course loads inflicted upon us. But then I stop and remember that hard work always pays off and that there are thousands of kids who would kill to be in my shoes. It used to scare me when people would talk about how competitive of an environment this school has, but not anymore. Now it just makes me proud to be able to say that I am a part of a student body as capable as we are.
Back home, when I tell people that I attend Michigan, the most frequent response is “you’re so lucky!” No, I am not lucky, I am deserving. It’s not luck that gets us up every morning to go to class and continuously challenge ourselves. It’s not luck that keeps us up all night studying, determined to do whatever it takes to prove that we belong here. And it sure as hell isn’t luck that drags us down to the stadium in freezing weather to watch our team, well…let’s be honest, get destroyed. It’s the Michigan difference.
No matter where I go in life, I will forever be a Wolverine. One that knows Saturday mornings are the best night of the week but also that there’s no greater reward than one that comes from resilience and hard work. Michigan, you will always be my first love, one that has pushed me beyond my limits and exceeded any expectation I've ever had.
