A few days ago, I moved into my dorm room at the college I will be attending for the next four years. I had been anticipating this exact moment since I was a freshman in high school, and to have already gotten to this day is a dream. The time has gone so fast, and it seems like only yesterday I was starting my first day of high school. Now I am starting my first year at college.
Although I am only an hour away from home, I still feel like I am starting an entirely new life in a new location. Even though I do have friends from my high school who are also attending the same college as I am, I need to be social, make new friends, and become more outgoing. Move in day was very nerve wracking for me as well. I was the last one to move into my dorm room, and the unpacking process was not fun. Being surrounded by boxes upon boxes of clothes, room decorations, bedding, etc. does make you feel overwhelmed. However, having my parents there to help me along with my roommates made the whole process much smoother. After settling in and organizing everything the way I wanted it to be, it was finally time for me to say goodbye to my parents.
Because I am the younger sibling in my family, the goodbye process wasn't as full of tears and hugs as I thought it would be. My parents said their goodbyes, hugged me, made sure I was comfortable in my room, then left. That was when reality set in. For the past 18 years I had been living under the roof of my parents, and had become used to their continuous support and ability to solve problems with ease. Now, living in a dorm room with two other people I had just met, I started to panic. How would I live without my parents? What would I do if I needed help? But what I worried about most: becoming independent and living on my own.
Luckily, the past few days have been great. I have met so many people, made new friends, and have become close with my two roommates. And the dining hall food at my college is delicious as well! Also, because I live on a coed floor I do have to share bathrooms with the opposite gender (so boys), and although my parents freaked out about it and myself as well, it really is not that big of a deal. Sure it is strange at first, as for example I was washing my face in the sink this morning and a few guys walked in, some shirtless to shower, others fully clothed to brush their teeth, but you get used to it, and it is not worth freaking out about. Everyone is super friendly, and the awkwardness fades with time.
We do start class tomorrow, which makes me nervous as heck, but the classes I am taking are ones that I am intrigued by, so I am filled with nerves and excitement. For all those who are seniors in high school applying to college now or for students who are about to start their first year of college, going to college is so exciting. There are so many new experiences to be had, and being able to start fresh in a new state, city, etc. is amazing. Going to college can make you homesick (I will probably have random spurts of homesickness some time this year), but knowing that you are going to be living somewhere amazing for the next four years is surreal.
