Dear High School Seniors,

The first day of senior year you feel like you're on top of the world. Everyone knows you. You have been around the same people since Pre-K. You are top dog of the school. Freshmen fear you, and seniority has its perks. You are beyond excited for a fun-filled year with your very best friends during your last year of high school. But at the time, it will seem like just another year.

You will carpool to football games and dress in outrageous clothes to match the theme of the night. Other nights you won’t. But I'm telling you to go to every game. You will miss the Friday night lights when you can no longer be a part of that rowdy student section. Support the teams that salute your alma mater alongside your classmates.

You will complete your last preseason camp and sigh in relief to finally be done with the grueling 7 am workouts. But the truth is, you'll miss the sweat, laughs, and memories you made with your teammates. You will play your last season of the sport you grew to love. The last game may hit you slightly. You will realize you played your last game and you will know the end of your career has come and gone. Some teammates will remain friends, and others will only remain on rosters beside your name and in your memories.

You will see the same classmates you have seen year after year, 180 days at a time, for one last set of 180 days. You have grown up with these people; you know who is friends with who, where everyone's favorite spot to hang out is, and the weird quirks that make your class unique. But this is the last time you will see many faces.

A handful of "friends" will remain genuine friends. When you find your true friends, hold on to them and never let them go. The most transitional stage of your life, thus far, is upon you and they will be the people to help you through the rough patches to come. However, enjoy the time you have and make memories with the people who currently surround you.

All I want is for you to have a memorable senior year. I promise it will be over in the blink of an eye and you will not even realize it. Your last homecoming, prom, sports banquet, and pep rally will go as quickly as they came. Before you know it, it’s over.

Then it’s summer, which is still pretty great. It feels like any other summer, but you're determined to go out with a bang because it’s the last summer before college. You make big plans with your best friends and go to every amusement park, party, baseball game, and beach that you can think of. As the summer months tick by, paperwork from your future school floods your desk, supplies and dorm accessories overcrowd the once empty corner in your basement, and a million thoughts flood your mind.

Remember going back to school in August last year? The time has come once again. But suddenly it's not like every other year. Instead of being in the same classroom, some of your friends will be just miles away, and others will put states between you. It’s the last few weeks of August now, and the first of your friends leave.

Your boyfriend/girlfriend leaves. Your best friend leaves. You wish them the best, of course, but you miss them when they are gone. You selfishly want them home to make a midnight Sheetz run with you or to drive aimlessly and listen to throwback music. Hugs are given like candy on Halloween and tears flow like a river. This is when it starts to hit you. The people you grew up with are now going their separate ways to live their own lives.

Then comes the day. Your move-in day. The car has been packed to the roof the night before, so all you have left to do is say goodbye. You hug your animals one last time. Your brother/sister awaits with open arms, and maybe an insult or two to lighten the mood, before sending you off to your new home for the next four years with your parents. You realize how much stuff you have.

I really need all this to live on my own? Yes, you do. And that is when it hits you again. You have been taken care of by your parents for 18 years, and now it is time to live on your own.

The final goodbye to your parents is hard. Given, it is probably harder for the nurturing mother to let her baby go on their own for the first time, it is definitely not easy to see your loving mother and father depart your campus with tears staining their cheeks. But your roommates and new friends are going through the same thing.

Find new people and keep yourself busy. The first day flies by because of the excitement and nerves.

And then when it all comes to a halt and you’re laying in your bed the first night in your dorm, as I am right now, that is really when it hits you. You are on your own, a responsible adult. Mommy and daddy can’t bail you out of all your trouble anymore, and they most likely aren't five minutes away like they used to be at home.

I am in a foreign bed, surrounded by new people who are virtually strangers (except for a few familiar faces from a Facebook page), and, if we want to realistic, my roommates are included. It is scary, yet so exciting. A few breakdowns and happy tears later, you will realize you made it. You are starting an amazing chapter of your life. The memories you made in high school were great, but the memories to come will be even better. Have a great senior year and an even better freshman year of college.

Sincerely,

A First Day College Freshman