With September quickly approaching, I've started to think about how different these next few years of my life are going to be. For the last sixteen years or so of my life, I've prepared in this month of August to head back to school, whether that was elementary school, high school or college. Now, a recent graduate of college, I've come to the realization that I'm never going to have to do that again. I'm never going to be sent a school supplies list of things I'll need before the new school year starts. I'm not going to need a new backpack or new school clothes or shoes.

As June and July passed by, I didn't think anything of it - not heading back to school. It still felt like every other summer has. But, now that we're halfway through August and I see my friends talking about going back to school...and don't even get me started on all of the back-to-school commercials on TV reminding the unfortunate ones who actually do have to get ready to go back to school in September.

And it's not that I'm not excited to be a college graduate and to be done with school (for now) and to not have to worry about writing papers and deadlines and the god-forsaken word "homework". But I think I've slowly started to realize that not going back to school means that all of that adult responsibility is starting to become a reality. Just the other day I had a conversation about taxes with my mother and I swear my brain was turning to mush - it clearly hasn't caught up with the fact that I'm "adulting" now. I've also started looking into getting a new car and stuff like credit and co-signing is brand new to me and the realization that going to school and focusing on my education isn't my priority anymore, it's pretty scary stuff.

The last four years of my life at college were some of the most exciting and joyful years of my life and I know I'm going to miss them. But I'm also excited about what's to come with my new freedoms in life - sure I'm still leaving at home but freedom from the stresses of what college can put on someone are now lifted and what's put in its place are the stresses of paying bills and trying to find an apartment or paying for a car. Though there will always be stresses in life, especially when it comes to "adulting", I'm excited to see what I'm going to do with my free time during the year and what 2017 will bring!