The day you have been dreaming of for as long as you can remember. The day your parents have been dreading, the day you have been eagerly anticipating, and the day you start a new and exciting chapter of your life. You think you are prepared for the mix of emotions that will come over you on that first day, but I can guarantee you, you probably aren't. It's move-in day.
The ride to your dream college is exciting to say the least. All of your stuff is packed like sardines in the back of your car, you're texting your friends back home, music is playing over the radio, and you're looking at the people in the car with you, knowing you won't be in that car on the way back to the place you have called home for so long. You feel something wash over you— something you haven't felt before— and you realize that this is real. It's happening, and it's happening fast. It's move-in day.
When you pull onto campus and see all of the freshman going through the same thing as you are, you feel a sense of relief— a sense of belonging. But you still have a knot in your stomach knowing that you won't be experiencing it with the people you have experienced everything else with. It's move-in day.
You unload the car, smile at perfect strangers, accept the upperclassmen's help when they offer to carry stuff to your room, and feel a little overwhelmed with all that is going on around you. People are flowing in and out of the building, all working towards the same goal of making this place their home. You see parents with tears in their eyes; little brothers and sisters climbing staircases with their big siblings; volunteer students smiling and welcoming each student that walks by; lots and lots of school supplies, clothes, furnishings, and decorations. It's move-in day.
When you enter your cold, bare, prison-looking dorm with the key that you will probably lose at least once, you feel a little nervous. How will you make this place your home? Will it be cozy and warm like your bedroom back at home? Slowly, but surely, everybody starts unpacking your things and the place comes together. YOUR room slowly fills up with YOUR stuff, and it finally feels like YOURS. Unpacking, laughing, decorating, organizing. You and your family transform the dorm into a bedroom— the place that you will call home. The place that you will stroll into at odd hours of the night, stay up late in because you are so busy studying, and maybe, at times, feel a little homesick in. It's move-in day.
Once everything is unpacked, your parents take pictures of you and your roommate with teary eyes and full hearts. They are excited for your journey, sad they can't experience it with you, nervous about your safety, and secretly a little glad that they won't have to clean up your messes for the next 9 months. It's move-in day.
It's time for your family to leave now, and they make sure you have everything you need. The goodbyes hurt a little and you choke back tears as you hug your siblings. Your mom pulls you into a hug and tells you that she loves you with a shaky voice. Your dad wraps you in his arms and tells you how proud he is of you and to be careful. They tell you to study hard, trust your gut, do the right thing, and make friends. You nod your head yes as a tear rolls down your cheek and they walk out the door. You think about how you won't be seeing them every night, how you won't sit down at the dinner table with them and talk about your day, and how you will be sleeping in a new town, a new place, a new bed. It's move-in day.
It hurts for a minute, but once they drive away, you feel eager to do something. Anything. Take a walk around campus, meet new people, go to the grocery store, hit the dining hall, put some finishing touches on your room. Whatever it is you want to do, you do it and you do it with excitement. You meet so many people that you forget your own name, never mind everyone else's. You make conversation with a girl in the elevator about her shoes. Everybody is just as awkward, excited, and anxious as you are. You fit in, even though you may not have before. It's move-in day.
You turn out the light that night and lay under your covers, staring at the ceiling. It finally hits you that this is real. This is it. It's move-in day, and it's just the beginning of your new journey.
