Dear fellow seniors,

It just seemed like yesterday when we arrived on campus in August 2013. We were excited, yet nervous. We did not know exactly what to expect.

We have changed and learned so much since freshman year. We have transformed from the immature, awkward 18-year-olds to the mature, responsible leaders that the world so desperately needs today. We are definitely not the same people that we were as freshman. We have evolved with the times.

TCU has evolved with us as well. BLUU 2 opened during our sophomore year while Colby Hall was being renovated. During our junior year, the new part of the library was opened and Brockman Hall met its maker. And this year, we will not be using eCollege nor will we be buying textbooks from Barnes and Noble (if Amazon, Chegg, etc. does not have a specific textbook for a specific class).

In 34 weeks, we will wake up and put on our purple gowns. We will enter Schollmaier for the very last time. We will walk down the aisle while one of the School of Music professors or the TCU Band plays "Pomp and Circumstance." When our names are called, we will cross the stage to receive the sacred piece of paper that we have been working our hearts out for the past three, four or five years: our diploma. Graduation will be a time of excitement, yet uncertainty. In 34 weeks, we will be heading out into the real world. No longer will we have a predictable schedule of going to class and studying. In 34 weeks, we will have new responsibilities put upon us. Some of us will be responsible for paying our college loans, some of us will be getting married (congratulations!), some of us will be heading off to grad school, some of us will be joining the U.S. military and almost all of us will have to find a full-time job to support ourselves. Some of us will have the privilege of staying in Fort Worth, while many of us will be moving on to bigger and better things.

However, no matter how far away we are from each other or from TCU, we will always consider ourselves Horned Frogs for life. It will not matter if we attend another university for graduate school, we will always bleed purple and white.

For many of us, our senior year at TCU will be a lot of "last year to ____" forever or for at least a while (if we're planning on attending grad school in the near future). It will be the last year to go on school sponsored trips that will cost little or no money (especially if we participate in the marching band or the athletics program). It will be the last year we can use the Rec Center without having to pay for a membership. It will be the last year we can get into a college athletics game without having to buy tickets. And for most of us, it will be the very last year that we can go to a fraternity or sorority party on Friday or Saturday night.

As seniors, we must cherish every moment at TCU. We must not take anything for granted. This year will sometimes be hectic and stressful. I know that many of us will be scrambling to finish the requirements for our core classes and our majors/minors. I know all of us want to graduate on time. But we must all remember that we were given an opportunity many people could only dream of. We were given the opportunity to go to college for three, four or five years; make lifelong friends and memories; learn many valuable lessons and become better people.

I am so excited to finish this last leg of the journey with each and every one of you. We have survived all of our worst days and conquered our worst fears. We have supported each other through our ups and downs. Most of all, we have scored some major victories. Let us come back to campus and finish this last part of our journey strong.

Sincerely,

Miku