I'm living in denial. After spending almost the entirety of my senior year, and all of my summer looking forward to what this year has brought me, it's almost come to a close. I keep checking off days in my planner with a heavy heart, as I realize that the best year of my life is ending. As sad as I am to say goodbye, I'm even more grateful for this year, for all it's given me.
So thank you freshman year for giving me new friends that I can already tell will be in my life forever, as well as keeping me connected with my old friends. I'm so grateful that I've been able to have friends at school that feel like my family and to be able to come home to the same group of friends that I loved so much while I was in high school, making it seem like nothing has changed.
Thank you freshman year for kicking my butt. I can honestly say that after this year, I can survive anything. From conquering four tests in one week, to making it to my 9 A.M. on Friday feeling like an actual corpse, nothing seems too intimidating for me to handle at this point.
Thank you freshman year for giving me a home away from home. On bid day, I would never have guessed how happy I would be in the chapter I've chosen. Walking into the house and being greeted by people who I love, as if they were my biological sisters, has been the best part of my day, everyday.
Thank you freshman year for helping me let go of people who are bad for me. Not everyone in your life is meant to stay there, and college has given me the opportunity to realize that it's okay to let go of people who aren't meant for you. And I'm so much happier because of it.
Thank you freshman year for giving me moments I'll never forget. So many times throughout the year, I've had to stop and take a mental picture of a moment as it was happening, because I knew that I wouldn't want to forget it. Before this year, I've only had a handful of "wow, so this is what real happiness feels like" moments, but now I've had countless.
Thank you freshman year for helping me figure out what I love, and for allowing me to take classes that I actually care about. Waking up for a class isn't hardly as painful, when you're fully invested in it's content, and the homework seems less pointless, when it's on a topic that you love.
But most of all, thank you freshman year for being the best year of my life, and the best start to college I could possibly ask for.
