The final test has been taken. The classes have wrapped up. The warmer weather has started and the semester has officially ended. This is my third year in college, and for the first time in two years, I'm not saying goodbye. I'm not packing up my bags to move to a new place. I'm not sending my transcripts nor preparing for another orientation. No, for once, I'm staying at a college for more than a year.

At first, I thought I wouldn't be able to do this thing called settling. Settling hasn't been in my vocabulary for a while. I've become so accustomed to making friends, finding my place, and then suddenly uprooting it all to move across country or across the state.

This year has been, without a doubt, the toughest of all. It's challenged me, changed me, and pushed me far beyond my comfort zone. At several times throughout the year, the thought of leaving, the thought of running back to Portland crossed my mind. I looked at flight schedules, and I looked at college applications. Running is simply what I have always done best. But here at Wayne State, a college that was never my first choice, a college that is in my backyard, has done what seemed like impossible. It got me to stay.

I said this before, Wayne State became my unexpected home. It's not my home because of the proximity to my parent's place. It's my home because of all the friends and memories I have made in such a short time. When I first found out I wasn't graduating until 2019, I wanted to leave immediately. I didn't like being back in Detroit, and all I could think about was finding a way out of here. But now, as the school year has come to a close, I'm finding it satisfying that I get to call this my home for another two years.

I'm glad I'm not saying goodbye, and if I am, it's only for the summer. In August I get to be back here doing what I love with the people I love. Wayne State has showed me that sometimes staying can be the best thing for you and as much as I will complain about Michigan not being my beloved Portland, OR, I can't see myself at any other school. At least until I graduate and I hopefully get into Grad School.