Saying Bye to Auburn: A Reflection of College Life

This May, my time as a college student will come to an end! College has been a major season of self-discovery. I moved to the other side of the country, transferred schools and moved farther from home, tried countless clubs and random activities, and learned so much about myself and the world along the way. Truthfully, I’ve realized reading advice from someone else will never equate to learning from your own experiences, but I hope you keep reading anyways!

Like What You Like

As someone who has always been fairly confident in myself, I’m pretty good at owning my likes, dislikes, interests, and hobbies, even if they don’t agree with the majority. Coming to college, I knew I wouldn’t get wrapped up in fitting in because I’ve never been afraid of individuality. What I didn’t prepare for was how difficult it is to decide what you enjoy and what you don’t when you are away from anything familiar! How can I be authentic if I don’t even know what I like?

I began to question everything. Do I really like Adidas, or did I just grow up around a lot of Adidas-wearers? People here seem to like Hokas, should I like those instead? This questioning that started with clothing spanned across all aspects of my life. I soon began to question my habits, hobbies, conversations, and cultural preferences. I felt lost and unsure how to find my true interests. I was desperately searching for a box to fit myself into, and after much searching, realized I don’t want to fit in any box!

You shouldn’t transform yourself to blend in, however being influenced by your environment isn’t always a bad thing. With discernment, it’s okay to allow yourself to be influenced by different people and experiences as you grow into who you’re meant to be. If we get caught up in always being our true selves, we leave no room for the beautiful growth that comes from adopting new ideas, styles, and ways of speaking from those around us. Just take it easy and don’t try so hard to define yourself. You aren’t supposed to know who you are yet. How boring life would be if you did!

Stay In Touch

It’s easy to get wrapped up in college life, and you should! Just because you get busy and love your new life doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to lose all contact with the people who were by your side for 18 years. Especially your family. Set aside time to call your parents and siblings. It’s a scary thing when you become a stranger to your own flesh and blood! A simple text or phone call once a week can build the foundation for long-lasting relationships. I’m a firm believer that your circle doesn’t have to get smaller as you age, and it's on you to make sure it doesn't.

It's Not That Serious

Now, I say this coming from a very relaxed, you have time, sort of family. So this may not apply to those needing to climb the corporate ladder fresh out of college. But if you, like me, like to take things slow and don’t mind a gradual success, hear me when I say: it’s not that serious. The grade you need, the club you have to make, the girl you need to become best friends with by Tuesday… not that serious. College has taught me that there are truly hundreds of different paths and ways of doing things. If you tunnel vision your way through and are solely focused on achieving rather than experiencing (and possibly failing) you will not have as rich and educational of a college experience. If you feel yourself getting honed in on a goal, that’s great, but don’t make it your god. Get some perspective and think of two other alternate outcomes you’d be okay with. It really will all work out in the end.

Don't Live For The Weekend

College can kick start the living for the weekend mentality. “If I can just make it to Friday, I will have fun then”. STOP DOING THIS! College is a special time where yes, you have lots of responsibilities and a busy schedule, but nothing is quite that serious yet. You can 100% afford to make your weeknights fun! If you start doing it now, it will carry over into post grad life. The idea of only truly enjoying two days out of the week is majorly depressing. Be present every day, even in the mundane ones.

Bye, Auburn!

All in all, I am ready to graduate and join the “real world” but am sad to leave my college self behind! Thank you to anyone reading, I hope this gave you some guidance and perspective. I can only imagine how much more growth these next few years will bring. Thank you, Auburn, for the memories and lessons.

War Eagle always!

Be Well, Auburn.