January 2015: I walked across the cold campus of Harrisburg Area Community College (HACC) for the first time, hoping desperately I would manage to find my classrooms on time. You could say it was my first time going to school.
I was homeschooled my whole life, I never had to sit in a real classroom for real lectures, unless you count ministry school, but that was a bit different. My husband dropped me off, and off I went. On my own, to pursue my dreams.
Initially, I decided to go to college because my husband wanted me to. After all, I had nothing else to do at home alone while he was at work. I was bored out of my mind. My husband was always one to believe in higher education as a necessary part of life; I, on the other hand, thought it wasn’t entirely necessary, especially for me. For a while I was convinced I would be a missionary, and you didn’t really need a degree for that.
None of the degrees at HACC interested me, so I decided to go with just doing my GenEds, then transfer to another school after a year. I was considering writing of some sort, maybe journalism, I still wasn’t sure, so this was my chance to try out different courses and see what I liked.
Thinking back on that first day at HACC, going because my new husband wanted me to, unsure of my future, I see how far I have come. A year later I transferred to Southern New Hampshire University Online and took my first Creative Writing class, and I knew this was what I wanted to do. My education became my own.
What I love about college is how I was able to try different classes and discover what I loved and didn’t love, I have been able to discover my passions and discover myself more and what I’m capable of. I have watched my writing grow from not knowing how to cite sources that first semester to writing 10-page papers on every topic imaginable citing in MLA and APA and now using creative elements like narrative, dialogue, plot, characters. I hardly knew how to use commas when I started out at HACC. It’s remarkable seeing how far I have come in the last three years.
From my first writing assignment, in my first English Composition class, I knew writing was for me. That’s not to say I didn’t doubt myself and have countless moments where I felt like the worst writer throughout my school years, but slowly, with every project, with every new challenge, I have watched myself grow and become more confident in myself.
At first, we may go to college because people tell us to, society tells us it's beneficial, your husband says you should, your parents expect it of you, but one day it will become your own. You will find yourself and what you love even if it takes a few major changes and you will own your degree. College is all about finding yourself then owning it, taking your future, and your skills into your own hands and pursuing your dreams.
I am one year away from finishing my Bachelor’s in English and Creative Writing degree and I’m still loving my classes, loving learning, and discovering myself, and I can’t wait to see what future lies ahead in my writing career. The great news is I can pursue my dreams, I can be a great writer, I can be whatever I want, I can be me. The future is mine to do what I want with it.