The good, the bad and the scary: A freshman experience
Everyone tells you that college is going to be the best years of your life, but why doesn’t anyone warn people about freshman year?
To start it off, you move in with a complete stranger that you cyber stalked the entire summer. After memorizing their Instagram layout like your personal playbook and brief text messages to determine what they are like, you are living with this person.
You sit there and look at this person and wonder if they’re about to become one of your best friends or a psychopath. You are left to figure out whether they talk in their sleep, snore really loud, or are just weird.
Another detail that’s always forgot ten is that you are also surrounded by more people than you ever dreamed of. There’s really nothing like waking up in the morning to six alarms going off around you — and none yours.
You get the chance to realize the talent around you. For instance, you get to observe the matted shower stall hair art or find a hamburger bun with a singular bite taken out of it on the floor.
Besides all of that, no one tells you about some of the amazing, hard working people and friends who live not only with you, but around you.
Outside the safety of the dorms, there are a lot of other things that manage to be left out. No one warns you about the lunchroom and the fear of looking for somebody you know.
You walk into that room blind every single time, and each time is filled with more anxiety than the last. People forget to mention your first bad grade or what it’s like taking your first midterm test. People also forget to mention that changing your major is more common than you think.
No one tells you about the friends you’re going to make and the people you are going to meet. You aren’t warned about how much freedom you feel the first couple weeks and the sadness you feel when you miss your family and friends. They don’t tell you about your first Late Night with your friends or joining your first intramural sport.
People don’t warn you about how you might have to call maintenance because one of the toilets won’t stop flushing (fourth floor Stavig knows what I’m talking about).
No one tells you about your first football game and your first FYS class. They don’t tell you about how awesome your VA can be (shoutout to Shirley).
Being a freshman is scary and difficult, but it is also a chance to experience everything life has to offer. Even with all the good and the bad experiences inside and outside the dorms, we get to live and be anything we want. Being a freshman has its challenges, but we’re all just getting started in this world.
