I remember being a kid and going to football games with my dad and seeing the students walk back to their dorms after the game and thinking to myself how I would be like them one day. I was so excited to embark on my journey to become a Buckeye.

However, my freshman year at THE Ohio State University was not all that I had hoped it would be.

I struggled to adjust to college and became very unhappy with my school choice. I saw how my friends from high school were thriving at their respective universities and I wondered why I didn't feel the same way. I had a long distance boyfriend at the time and visited him about once a month. I saw all the positive things about his university and instantly compared it to OSU.

It made me hate OSU.

I only saw the negatives of Ohio State and questioned transferring to another university because I was so unhappy. I wondered how I could possibly grow to love an unfamiliar place that separated me from the people I loved most.

I slowly fell into a funk where I didn't want to get involved, I didn't want to make any friends, I was done with Ohio State completely. I held onto this "grass is always greener" complex and refused to acknowledge the benefits of my own school, despite everyone telling me how great it was.

My mind and heart were elsewhere which took a toll on me. I felt like a number in such a big university and began to feel swallowed up by its size. I felt alone and isolated because it seemed like no one understood why or how I was feeling the way I was.

Then something changed. I saw a sign in the dollar section at Target that said, "bloom where you are planted." I bought it and hung it up in my room to remind me that I picked Ohio State for a reason. I realized I did have friends, good friends. I realized I am in a top 25 business program in the nation pursuing a degree. I am at a school that has traditions and passion and a faculty that cares about its students. I finished out that year happier that I had committed to "bloom where I was planted."

I am now in my second year here at Ohio State presented with new challenges and stresses I have never had to face before. I am no longer with my boyfriend from last year and my classes are tough. But despite all of those challenges I am learning a lot about myself. College is definitely been a learning curve, but it is important to embrace the learning curve. I am thankful to Ohio State for giving me some great friends and great experiences so far in my college career.

I still have days where I compare myself to others and their college experience or I miss my family, but those feelings are normal. My mind and heart are now present at Ohio State and I've found those feelings again that I had as a young 12-year-old watching those college students walk across the oval.