Hello everybody,
Confession: Yes, I am procrastinating and should be studying
for finals, but this is more fun.
I hope you’re enjoying your Sunday. It’s currently a cool 93
degrees here in Fort Worth. Anyway, I’m not about to talk to you about Texas
weather. That could be interesting, maybe, but I’m not gonna do it. Today, I’m
going to talk to you about things I’ve learned during the second half of my
freshman year of college. Remember when I wrote the “Lessons Learned” post?
Well this is the second part of that. Here goes.
1. You Do You
You might be saying to yourself, “geez, she already made an
entire post on this subject.” You would be correct, however, I just think it is
so important to remember, whether you’re in high school, college, in the
workforce, or whatever. People are going to judge you and tell you what you
should be doing, but it’s more important to stay true to yourself, and the
right people will come alongside you. Basically, like what you like, do what
you want to do, watch whatever shows you like to watch, be involved in
activities you enjoy…do them because you want to, not because someone else told
you that you should. Instead of the saying, “Look like a girl, act like a lady,
think like a man, and work like a boss,” it should be “Look like yourself, act
like yourself, think like yourself, and own it.” –JVNK Lastly, before I get off
my soapbox, here is a good reminder about the importance of being yourself:
“You can’t let people scare you. You can’t go your whole life trying to please
everyone else. You can’t go through life worried about what everyone else is
going to think. Whether it’s your hair, your clothes, what you have to say, how
you feel, what you believe, and what you have. You can’t let the judgment of others
stop you from being you. Because if you do, you’re no longer you. You’re
someone everyone else wants you to be.” –Unknown.
2. Spring is
different than Fall
Spring is different than fall, and not just in weather
patterns. As a freshman, in the fall, you’re the babies on campus, you’re kind
of expected to ask dumb questions, make dumb decisions, and be a little
clueless…it’s normal. When spring comes around, yeah, you’re still the babies
on campus, but there’s more expected of you. You’re expected to kind of at
least halfway know what you’re doing, make wiser decisions, and not have as
many minor crises as you did in the fall. Many freshmen even apply, interview
for, and sometimes even get chosen for leadership positions for the following
school year. That’s a big jump from just being a cute little high school
graduate starting college for the first time to growing up a little bit and
getting the college thing halfway figured out and thinking about being a leader
for the next batch of little babies. Also, aside from the growing up and
maturing thing, I thought I would have more time in the spring than I did in
the fall since I was no longer marching at football games, but that is
definitely false. Spring semester legitimately does not stop. Between assignments,
social events, sleeping, and eating, when you blink, it’s over, so just cherish
your time.
3. Ginger Ale is a
life-saver
Just trust me on this one, you’re bound to get sick, and I’m
not talking about from alcohol. At some point, your stomach will probably hate
you, and when you can’t stomach food or drink anything, ginger ale and saltines
will come to your rescue so that you do not get completely and utterly
dehydrated or starved, so just keep this in your fridge.
4. Relationships
matter
I’m not talking about boyfriends, girlfriends, significant
others. It’s just really important to have strong friendships with people who
love you for you and vice versa. Friends get you through some crazy times.
College life is wonderful, but it can be hard. There are many possible
struggles and hard times, and your friends get you through the good, bad, and
ugly; they’re there when your mom can’t be when you’re sick, they bring you
coffee and other yummy treats when you’re exhausted, they listen to you vent,
they laugh with you, cry with you, pray with you, and just experience life with
you. I honestly cannot imagine my year without the amazing people I’m blessed
enough to call my friends. “Where your
friends are, your riches are.”
5. You can’t do this
alone
Life was not created for a person to go it alone. College is
way too weird to do it alone, that’s for sure, that’s why it’s important to
have people you can lean on.
6. It’s okay to cry
“It’s better to cry
than to be angry, because anger hurts others, while tears flow silently through
the soul and cleanses the heart.
Confession: I’m not a big crier. Last semester, I legit did
not cry. This semester, I’ve let myself feel a little more. It is okay to cry
once in a while, it proves you’re human and you typically feel better
afterwards.
7. Get off campus
Just do it. If you’re like me and don’t have a car, I’m sure
someone in your friend group does, or just take a group and walk off campus, my
friends and I do that sometimes. Trust me, though, it’s really important to get
off campus. It doesn’t matter how much you love your school. Believe me when I
say that I LOVE TCU, because I do, but if you never get off campus, you will go
stir crazy. Have a girls night out at the movies, go out to dinner, it doesn’t
have to be anything wild, crazy, or expensive, just get off campus once in a
while.
8. Everything is
expensive
I just told you to get off campus. Now I’m going to warn you
that everything out there is expensive. I dropped $60 on groceries and all I
bought was some Gatorade, water, Benadryl, capri suns, and a couple snacks.
Budgeting money is not something I’m good at, and I’m warning you now, that
money on your debit card will be gone in a flash if you aren’t careful. Don’t
let that scare you, just use your money wisely, because, unfortunately, it
doesn’t grow on trees…yet.
9. Skipping class
isn’t the end of the world
I’m not telling you to skip class every time you don’t feel
like going…if I had done that, I would have gone to my math class maybe 4 times
(test days) this semester. Don’t do that. What I AM saying is that if you skip
your class a couple times, it’s really not the end of the world. It is
important to know your professor’s absence policy, but if it is a loose one,
and you have a class at 9 and a test for your major at noon that you haven’t
studied for, skip the 9 AM. I’ve skipped all of my non-major classes at least
once this semester and it has not hurt me. Sometimes, the 9 AM Monday morning
class just isn’t happening, and neither is the Friday 2 PM class, or maybe you
need to get to the airport before your class is over, it’s fine. I skipped my
Friday afternoon class to go to Oklahoma City for a Luke Bryan concert once and
did fine on the test 2 class days later. Just try not to skip the same class
more than once in a week, and if it is a major class, don’t skip it. That’s my
little spiel on that subject.
10. Wear Sunscreen
For all you fair skinned people like me, (and even if you’re
not as fair skinned), wear sunscreen, even if you’re just going outside to
study for a couple hours...if you don’t, you WILL burn. Also, keep aloe in your
fridge so when you do forget and end up burning, you can put that right on.
11. Benadryl is a
keeper
Allergies are a thing and benadryl is just something good to
keep in your medicine cabinet just in case you have some weird allergic
reaction or get a bug bite that swells.
12. Church is amazing
I go to church in a bar. It’s wonderful. Seriously, though,
last semester, I did not go to church at all (I grew up in the church), but
started going again this semester and have not missed hardly any Sundays. It
has just been something that I look forward to each week because not only do I
get to hear about Jesus, which is always awesome, I get to go with some of my
very best friends. The community at church just warms my heart and I was
looking around today at all of the college students crowded in this bar
worshipping our Heavenly Father together and it is just so beautiful to me.
It’s just another place I feel comfortable and safe and secure and I’ve been
blessed to share the experience and fellowship on the weekly with some of the
most remarkable people and I cannot wait until next semester.
13. Finals week still
sucks
I’m actually procrastinating from studying (still) as I type
this. This is the part that doesn’t really change from last semester. The only
thing that is somewhat different is that we know what to expect (sort of) this
time, and icepocalypse is not a thing in Texas in May, so that’s nice. It is
just really hard to stay focused and to study, but I have found that if I write
down what studying I am going to get done each day, I’m more likely to be
productive. Lists and schedules definitely help, but finals week still sucks,
and will probably always suck.
14. Packing is a
nightmare
The interesting part of the end of this semester is that not
only do we have finals, but it is the end of the school year, so we also have
to pack all of our stuff up and move out. It’s really hard to do that and study
at the same time. Also, I brought way more than I needed and accumulated so
much over the year, so if you’re an incoming college freshman, take note of
this and do not pack a ton of stuff, just what you absolutely need.
15. Goodbyes are
really hard
“How lucky I am to
have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” –Winnie the Pooh
I’m a freshman. We’ve established that. But I have friends
who are graduating and others who are not coming back next year, and that’s
just really hard. I’m not the one leaving this time, and I’ve figured out over
my Air Force Brat years that it is easier to leave than to be left. I am super
grateful, though that these people have been a part of my life and they have
definitely helped me grow this past year. I will just miss each of them to
pieces. Thank God for social media. Okay. I’m done with that before I get
emotional.
All in all, Freshman year is a year of trials, triumphs, and
huge personal growth.
May the Fourth
Be With YOU!
Yours truly,
Steph
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