Going off to college was one of the scariest moments of my life. I went from knowing everyone and everyone knowing me to not knowing a single soul which was very overwhelming at times. I was so used to my tiny high school where I had attended Pre-K through 12th grade. Basically I had the same friends, knew every teacher and never had to worry about being lost. I was afraid that I would not be able to handle the stress of being on my own because in high school I couldn’t even imagine eating at lunch alone, much less heading off to this totally new territory. Carrolton is about two hours from my home town, but in my eyes I was going to be millions of miles away. At first I was always homesick, but shortly after my first semester had started I realized that I was looking at it all wrong. I had actually found my new home away from home.

The absolute coolest thing about going off to college is not knowing anyone. At first that was absolutely terrifying but then I realized that everyone else there was going through the exact same thing I was. Going from being a big fish in a little pond to a tiny fish in basically the ocean, was absolutely terrifying. Thankfully, I was able to use this as an opportunity to meet so many new people and figure out exactly who I was. College is the time where you are just trying to find yourself. It's basically your time to try new things that you would not have even realized existed until you escaped from your hometown. I noticed that unlike high school, this is a much more accepting place, really no one cares, so I used this as a way of doing things I had always found interests in but never tried. I had a chance to recreate myself and find new hobbies and just improve myself overall. Once I stepped outside of my comfort zone, the entire world opened up for me and I realized that I could be anything I wanted. I had finally gained the courage to express myself without caring what anyone else thought and just strive to be the absolute best version of myself. I started learning how to accept myself and well just love myself in general. Which is extremely important.

Another very important lesson that I learned was that I am capable of so much more than I think. Being on your own can be scary at first because you really have no idea what you are doing. Learning to do the things that scared me, caused me to be able to stand on my own and basically do anything I want. Getting rid of fear, opened up so much for me and also made me feel a lot more independent. Whether it be small things or bigger things. I gained a better appreciation for “adulting” because even though I am not totally on my own, it is still totally different than my everyday routine at home.

Stepping out of my comfort zone in general was a huge achievement in itself. I found new passions like long boarding or just my new craving for adventures, I was no longer afraid of what was unfamiliar. I had finally gained the courage to overstep my boundaries which made me feel infinite in a way. Usually the things that scare you the most, turn out to be the most rewarding and satisfying. I know without going off to college, I would not have gained this fuller outlook on life. I do not believe that we can completely learn who were are by staying in one spot because we only know ourselves in that one place with those certain people. Seeing this small piece of whats out there made me want to strive to see it all. We tend to stay within our own "bubble" and this is so dangerous because we never really discover more than what we have always known. Which makes life pretty boring. Now that I have finished my first year and about to start my second, I could not imagine spending my college years anywhere else.

Thank you West Georgia for already opening my eyes to so much. I cannot wait to spend the rest of my years here. Go Wolves!