It's been quite the year. As I'm writing this, it's hard to believe I've been at school almost two full semesters. I remember back in high school when I couldn't believe I'd ever make it here. But I did, and you're about to do the same. I'm not saying I have any of the answers, but I thought, nevertheless, that I should pass on what I've learned along the way.

Warning: this may be one of the biggest (if not the biggest) transition that you will ever face. Once you get here and you get settled into a routine that is all your own, 100% under your control, you'll realize that you're split between two worlds. You won't exactly fit in to your pre-college life, and while you're at school, you'll be missing how things used to be at home.

And that'll surprise you: when you visit your family you'll be surprised that no one knocks on your door asking to borrow this or that, or that your friends aren't a few feet away. And at school, you'll resort to calling your family several times per week to tell them funny stories about your friends that all have weird nicknames since they've never actually met them.

But the key to college is putting yourself out there. And not to beat you over the head with that cliche expression, but it really is what you make it, and if you're one of those people who expects to meet your lifelong friends by sitting in your dorm room, binging Netflix and praying for someone to introduce themselves to you, you're going to have some catastrophic culture shock. College can be the loneliest place in the world--even worse than high school — or it can be the best.

You'll overpack and you'll pack incorrectly just like I did, though I'm not really sure I have any advice for you besides to pack more food than you think you'll need, because you'll run out and probably won't have a proper grocery store within walking distance.

But most importantly, go on adventures. College is hard, and they expect you to act like adults and make some of the biggest decisions of your life. But you don't have to completely let go of your immaturity and childhood. If someone invites you to do something, say yes no matter what (well, almost no matter what, remember, you're an adult now and can go to jail if you do something illegal). Some of my best stories come from when my friends and I planned to do one thing but ended up doing something else and having a blast all the while.

Lastly, remember that our society likes to create arbitrary benchmarks and tracking programs that create a schedule for where you're supposed to be, how you're supposed to feel, and what progress you're supposed to have made — especially at college. But don't listen. Always, always do what is best for you, even if it is harder and even if popular culture tells us that should be something different.

Make the most of your opportunities, but if you "fall behind" or "take an alternate path" that doesn't mean you're some kind of outcast, that means you're making the most of the one life you've got to live.

Welcome to Miami University. I hope they are the best years of your life, but I think it's pretty safe to say that if you let them, they will be. I know that's certainly the case for me.

#LoveAndHonor