Leaving for college for the first time is one of the most exciting yet terrifying things.

For me, I was leaving everything I had known for 18 years. Naples, Florida was my place and I loved every square mile of it. But I also liked the thought of calling Tallahassee home for the next four years. Florida State University was a dream for me ever since I was a little girl. It was finally time to move away and take my first walk of life as a college student. What could go wrong right?

WRONG

For the first month at FSU, I had a multitude of things throw me for a loop. Granted, I joined a sorority, met some new friends and got a job, but every day I went home to a place that didn’t feel exactly like “home.” It was toxic. I needed to leave as soon as possible and that’s exactly what I did.

On the surface, I tried to be the happy-go-lucky Taylor that everyone knew, but behind the scenes, I was a mess.

Two months in, I considered leaving FSU due to a silly, unnecessary feud my roommate caused. But I couldn’t let her get the best of me. Fall semester of my Freshman year tested my emotions. I hit rock bottom, but thank goodness I stuck it out because what was in store for me was something I would never have expected.

The thing with me is I don’t like sharing my feelings. I hold everything in for quite some time until I hit my breaking point. Luckily, my living situation got out to my fellow sisters and I was offered a bed in my sorority house Spring semester.

After living on an air mattress for three months, this was the best news ever. No, I didn’t know who my roommates would be, but I figured nothing could be worse than the terror I already dealt with. Little did I know, I would be put in a triple room with two of the most empowering individuals I have ever met.

Every day I came home to smiling faces…people who actually cared about me as a person. It was a nice change to say the least. I can thank these two women for opening so many doors in my life.

Throughout the next couple of months, I became more and more involved. I learned so much about my sorority and so much about Dance Marathon here at FSU, an organization that has my heart. I met so many older sisters and made so many connections that I know will help in the future There aren’t enough words to describe how thankful I am for room 17(38) and its inhabitants.

I guess the point of this story is me telling you to never give up. There will be days where getting out of bed with a smile on your face is the hardest part of your day. There will be days where you’ll have to take the trash out multiple times because it’s filled with tissues. But there will also be a day where it will all click. Everything will come full circle and you’ll know exactly why bad things happen to good people. Without my bad roommate, I wouldn’t be where I am today.