Going into college we all want to fit in the best we can, and not look like a completely lost freshman wandering around campus soaking up our newly found freedom. But even if you've learned that hanging a lanyard around your neck is a surefire way to say "I'm new here", from the perspective of upperclassmen, freshmen are a breed of their own. From the not so inconspicuous 'lost and confused' face as they look down at their phones to review again where their classroom is, to doing everything in a pack of at least 5 people, its the small things that make me realize how much we've all changed since first arriving on campus and how much we learned in the meantime.
One of the most beautiful experiences of being a freshman is knowing that we're all in the same boat for the most part. In my college experience, people were willing to go out of their way to invite people who were eating alone to come sit at their table and introduce them to everyone there. This was one of the nicest ways to be welcomed into my college as well as one of the ways I've met most of my friends.
Fast forward two years and a wealth of memories of later, I'm more than happy eating alone. Perhaps its because I'm an introvert or my tendency to procrastinate homework to the last minute some days, but the thought of spending lunch with myself and my books sounds like an average day. Between club meetings, classes, internships and jobs, syncing up my schedule with my best friends and their busy lives can be nearly impossible.
Unless you are the fortunate few who are able to have best friends in the same major as you, most likely the more courses you take towards completing your degree the less likely you'll have the opportunity to share those classes with your best friends. Being forced to branch out and make new connections while maintaining and nurturing older friendships is college's way of teaching us all a lesson on independence. Enjoy the weird feeling of being in a room of people you don't know and who don't know you. Sit alone and watch that same cat video for the millionth time while listening to you 2000's pop radio without shame. Appreciate the moments of silence. In this hectic world it's important, and often times vital for sanity's sake, to find time for yourself. The peace and quiet of being with yourself with your thoughts can make all the stress of the day melt away for a little while.
Freshmen, have fun with your roaming packs of friends, the endless struggle of making plans in a group chat and the welcoming feeling of being surrounded by people who make you happy. There's a time for everything and freshman year is the time for impracticality. As you grow up your friends list ebbs and flows with new people and old acquaintances. Make time for the people who push you to grow and succeed and edit out the friends that have brought more negativity than positivity into your life. Sitting alone doesn't mean you don't have friends. Sitting alone is time to nurture the relationship with yourself, because even you need time to support yourself and your goals.
