I remember finishing applying for colleges and feeling so gitty to start dorm room shopping! I couldn't wait to move out, it was going to be a dream come true! No rules, no parents, no restrictions...August couldn't get here fast enough.

Fast forward to now, in the middle of my junior year, and what ultimately has been the hardest school year mentally and physically.

When I was applying for colleges in high school, nobody ever told me how hard it was going to be. I mean, it's college, of course it's going to be hard. But I mean really hard. Hard on my body, my mind, my relationships, my grades, my friendships, my family, and my life in general. Coming into college was like being thrown into a whole new world where I had to become a whole new person, and I wasn't ready for that, but I am thankful for that.

I remember thinking my freshmen year in college how terrible my senior year will be because it means my last year being on campus and being a college student! I never wanted this life to end! Until the hard parts started hitting me and shit got real. My classes weren't the general education classes anymore...I was actually learning about my major? I was actually learning information that I knew would be useful in my life after I graduated and I knew I had to switch gears. College, for me, wasn't just about getting good grades anymore. It was about shaping myself into the best student so I can become the best teacher to my future students (shoutout to all Education majors!).

Once I made that switch and began looking at my whole self, not just my "student self", my life turned into a constant motion that hasn't seemed to stop...but in the best way possible.

I have seen so much personal growth in myself, and is even recognizable through my friends, through making this transition midway through my college career. I started getting up earlier, visiting my professor's office hours, picking up more shifts at my job, stopped skipping class as much (sorry mom), getting ahead on my assignments instead of procrastinating until the night before (or the day of...), reading more books for pleasure, picking up new hobbies, traveling to new places, and so many more refreshing opportunities that I opened up for myself. I am learning more about myself through my experiences in college than I ever have at any other time in my life, and I am ready to apply this to the "real world."

The busier my life becomes, the more anticipation I have to finally graduate and show the world everything I have learned! I want to see how all my efforts have been rewarded and recognized in the end. I want to graduate knowing I gave my 110% and was able to push through all the stress and responsibility that comes with being a full time college student. I want to know that I am more than ready to put all my knowledge and experience to use and continue growing into the best version of myself.

All of this is possible and attainable if I keep my end goal in mind...graduation. When I can take a step back and recognize all the good I have achieved in my college years. When I can appreciate all the hard times that made me stronger and even more motivated to continue pushing forward. When I can finally see the results of everything I worked for in the last four years of my life.

So to any upperclassmen in college who feel like you're struggling to see the light at the end of the tunnel...just think of everything you're working towards and why. Think of the person you will have become when you finally get handed your degree.

Think of the satisfaction of knowing and telling yourself, "I did that."