February 28th was one of the most memorable days of my life. I woke up that morning in the middle of upstate New York, visiting Colgate University. I hadn’t gotten into Michigan at that point, my number one school. I had hesitantly applied to Colgate as regular decision earlier that month. A great school? Yes. A great location? Let's just say... no. I had heard amazing things about Colgate, but it wasn’t the place for me. I grudgingly took that Friday off of school to drive through upstate New York for five hours, only to receive the most memorable news of my life.
Naturally, (and, yes, I mean naturally) I woke up and checked Wolverine Access. Every Friday since the first decisions were sent out in early December, I checked my Wolverine Access hourly. For all of those people who got in after that first round, I know that you understand my pain. I mean, are they kidding with the way that they send out decisions?! But maybe it's part of what makes Michigan, Michigan. We don’t do anything like anyone else.
On that dark morning, my Wolverine Access appeared with a slight difference. This time, I was given the option to “view my decision.” “Congratulations, you have been admitted into the University of Michigan Class of 2019.” Even if I was accepted into my dream school while I was in the middle of nowhere, with just my mom to celebrate with, everything was different from this moment on. I knew where I would spend the next four years of my life.
On that day, I made some of the most important decisions of my life. I put my deposit down and withdrew from the rest of the schools that I had applied to. There was no backing out at that point. But why would I need to back out? Michigan is ranked at the top in academics, it's diverse, we have a great athletic program, and everyone literally embodies the phrase “work hard, play hard.” So, what else could I possibly need?
I’ve come to realize that it’s not only the big things that make Michigan, Michigan. It’s every little thing that no one told me about as I was making the best decision of my life.
The Food
Take advantage of the food. From Main Street and State Street to South University, you have enough options to eat out every night. Remember the freshman 15 that you never thought that you’d gain? Well, I can tell you that most Universities don’t have Pizza House, NYPD, or South U Pizza conveniently open until sunrise. Pancheros will be calling your name on your way to the Big House on a game day. Don’t resist the temptation. The blacked-out version of you will need it to soak up the Kamchatka that you had been drinking since 8:00 a.m. If Norovirus hits the dining halls again, be sure to frequent Au Bon Pain in the Union. Or, if you’re like me and you're still not sure how to pronounce it, ABP.
The Partying
No one prepares you for drinking at 8:00 a.m. and I’d be concerned if someone had. Taking shots in a dorm room with your roommates at 7:45 a.m. before heading to a friend’s room to pre-game the pre-game (because, yes, we do pre-game the pre-game, before heading to the tailgate) is a normal occurrence, so don’t be frightened. As for the green juice that boys try to feed you at tailgates, they put Everclear in that. If you don’t know what Everclear is and you want to spend a game day in bed from 10:45 a.m. until nighttime, you should try it! Your older friends will warn you that it’s a marathon, not a sprint. And they are always right. Your liver does not know how to take pulls of Kamchatka on the first day of welcome week.
The People
The type of people who you were trying to escape? They're still here. All those girls you wanted nothing to do with? You're going to meet more of them here.The guys you couldn't stand in high school?" They haven't gone anywhere, either. But they type of people you wanted to meet? They're here too. And there are a lot of them. And there are a lot of them. I decided to join a sorority earlier this year. I was nervous that my experience might be similar to that of my all-girls high school. Also known as everything that I wanted to escape. Except it was the opposite. Through happiness and heartache, the 60 girls who we call our sisters are there for each other through thick and thin. From hysterically laughing to profusely crying to holding back your hair back after a long night out, they are the ones who make this school worth it. As for the boys... well, boys will be boys wherever you go.
The Freedom
When I was graduating from my high school, everyone warned us that we would have more free time in college. Many of us were going from playing three varsity sports to only having two or three classes a day. It's the life of a washed up high school athlete. You don’t know what they really meant until you’re here, at Michigan, with hours upon hours with nothing to do. I didn’t take advantage of the opportunities that I was handed during my first semester. I was more focused on finding a costume for every night of Halloweek and my social life, than I was on pursuing the things that had always made me happy. My advice to you is find your identity before focusing on the momentary things. At one point or another, we're thrown into an environment where we're not so comfortable and the things that you thought that you could depend on will no longer be there. Remember, there are 43,000 people at this school. Someone else always feels the way that you do. That's what makes Michigan, Michigan. You have the freedom to be yourself and to do everything and anything that makes you happy.
Maize and Blue
You’ll never understand what it means to be a Michigan Wolverine until you’re sitting in the Big House with 110,000 of your closest friends, chanting the fight song. You’re going to be a Wolverine for the rest of your life, but you’re not always going to live and breathe Maize and Blue. So, from September 1st to April 28th, for your four years, bleed the two truest colors that you know because after you leave, no one will truly understand like those people who lived and breathed it by your side.
