This is just one article in a sea of these articles that exist and are full of different insights, some unique and some well-repeated. Even though this article really is just one of many, I couldn't help myself. I graduated high school in 2014, three years have absolutely flown by and now college graduation in 2018 is looming and I am getting ready for a new set of lasts. Because of that, I can't help but think about the truths I wish people had told me when I walked that stage and left high school behind.

Things will never be this simple again.

If you thought that high school was difficult, you'd better brace yourself for college. In college, you have more free time, but you also have more work and a great deal more responsibility. No one is going to follow you around and wake you up for class or tell you to do your homework because your life choices are all yours now. College has been the best experience of my life, but I'm not going to lie to you, I often long for the days of high school when I didn't ever have to study and everything was so easy for me. Appreciate your last days of the simple life, because while college is a great experience, nothing about it is simple.

You won't ever see some of your classmates again.

Sadly, the day you walk that stage will probably be the last day you see many people in your class. There were about 200 people in my class. I knew every single one of them and I have maybe seen 25 of them since graduation. Three of the people in my class have unexpectedly passed away. It may sound cheesy, but remember that your words and last moments with your high school friends count, especially if you're going to college somewhere far away. I never even thought about the fact that I would likely never see many of my classmates again until it hit me one day many months after graduation. If you consider it now, you can appreciate your last moments more.

You can't go back.

Even if you live in the same town, or go to college in the same town with all of your high school friends, you still can't go back to high school. Things are going to be different no matter how much you want them to be the same. Instead of fearing the changes, embrace them, because the more you do the more you will get out of college. College won't ever be high school, but here's the thing: if you do it right, it will be much better.

Your best years are ahead of you.

I know, I know you've probably heard this a million times by now. When I took my diploma and walked out of my high school football stadium, I was absolutely terrified. What was I going to do with my future? Would I ever make any more friends? How could I go to a college where I didn't know a single person? Here's a spoiler alert for you: everything works out in the end, especially if you embrace the new environment. I can't figure out how I'm going to say goodbye to college because it has truly been the best experience of my life. So, while you say goodbye to high school, it's okay to be sad and fearful of the future, but don't believe that your best moments are over. Your story is really just starting. In the words of Coach Nick Saban, "This is not the end, this is only the beginning."