College is regarded as the best years of a person's life: you meet the people who will be in your wedding (while simultaneously meeting that special someone), you find the career of your dreams, and you make crazy memories to last a lifetime.
Supposedly.
The gilded perception of college at the end the 12-year yellow brick road of academia is apparently the shining goal, the safe zone. When you finally get there, you almost feel as if you've passed through a portal of sunshine and rainbows. You think to yourself, "From here on out, my life is going to be amazing!"
I had to be the bringer of bad news, but that initial high is a lie. The idea that college should be nothing but pure bliss needs to end; it's damaging to students because they feel like they're doing something wrong.
No one tells you that you will have to relearn to make friends. It sounds easy because you've had friends your whole life, but do you remember how you made them? Chances are it didn't just happen; it took effort that you don't remember. College sometimes makes that effort much harder.
You're in huge classes, people rush from building to building with their headphones firmly in place, and you have neighbors that you actually have to visit. Granted, you have a roommate who is essentially forced to socialize with you, but that takes more effort because you're sharing a space. For a while, it's lonely. That's the hard truth.
No one tells you that living on your own is hard to balance. First, you have to learn how to not destroy your clothes in the machines, and you learn the hard way that sometimes socks do get eaten by the dryer. You have to keep your own space clean, take care of yourself, watch your budget, and balance school and social life. When you're sick, you wish your mom would obsess over your cold the way she does.
No one tells you that you will be jealous of your friends at other schools. You see them having fun with new people, and a piece of you longs for the days when those other people were you. Goofing off, staying up late, gossiping, and doing homework together will be things that seemed mundane at the time, but that you learn to appreciate when the people you love are hundreds of miles away.
No one tells you that college puts you in the Big Leagues; now, you're playing for life points. These grades matter because you're earning a degree to get a job to live a successful life. Blowing off schoolwork isn't acceptable anymore.
That being said...
No one tells you that not all of your classes are "I cry every day" hard and choosing your classes makes certain assignments seem like less work. Some people have this idea that college is the hardest thing you'll ever do, and sometimes is it, but often you'll find that high school prepared you fairly well.
No one tells you that it's okay to make mistake. Okay, I'm sure some people have said this, but when you actually make a mistake, were they actually telling the truth? It's inevitable that you will mess up, but that's okay because you will learn from it.
No one tells you that you'll have moments where you completely break down and wish to be a little kid again with no responsibilities aside from loving and being loved. Shit gets real so fast that one day, you'll be walking down the hall to the bathroom, you'll realize that at that moment, life is flying by.
These are just a few things that no one tells you, a sample of the nitty-gritty truth. Remember, there is always an untold truth.
