Final Observations

As this school year is coming to a close and I'm packing up my room, I thought I'd make some observations about my freshman year of college.

1. I have a lot more clothes now than I did when I came to school. Honestly I don't know how I am going to pack it all because I just have so many things.

2. The second floor of the library shouldn't even be considered part of the library. It is just another place for people to socialize. It seems like everyone thinks it is okay to talk at a normal level when on this floor, they should relearn that when in the library you are to use your inside voices.

3. Living in St. Mary's, a house on Lapsley, turned out to be a lot more fun than I thought it would be. Once I realized that I wouldn't be living in a dorm I was upset because I thought I wouldn't be getting the "real college experience". However, I didn't miss out on much actually I loved it, and if I had to do it again I would choose Saint. Mary's instead of getting stuck with it.

4. When you ask someone where they are from and they live in New Jersey, they assume you know where their town is. I am from Maryland and don't know much about Jersey, at the beginning of the year I would tell people I don't know where that is. They would proceed to explain it to me, so over time I just started nodding and pretending I knew where they lived because that was a lot easier than hearing their explanation of the geography of New Jersey.

5. The hours of Campion still suck, and the food still isn't that great. Even though I can always find something to eat when I'm there, I still wish the food will get better.

6. The people that go to this school truly love Saint Joseph's with a passion that is unexplainable to others.

7. I have realized that I am a "home body" and I miss my family way more than I thought I would. When I'm at school I feel a little disconnected from my family. My parents and little brother are back home in Maryland, my older sister is in Boston going to school, and my older brother is in Peru doing service work. Even though I talk to all of them on a regular basis whether it be on the phone, through Facebook/ Twitter, or texting, I still feel disconnected. I love Saint Joseph's and I can't see myself anywhere else, this just makes me appreciate my family much more and makes me treasure the time I get with them over breaks. Also, it has shown me that even though this may be dorky to say my family is awesome and I love them so much.

8. I have talked about this last observation with my roommates many times. The idea of college is so weird. Packing up the first 18 years of your life into boxes, to move in with complete strangers, and spend a school year with them. Sometimes you get to live with someone you've known for a long time, or maybe someone you met who has similar interests and living schedules as you, but most of the time you're stuck with people you have never even met. That is what happened to me. I got stuck in a room with 4 complete strangers. When I first thought about going to college and living with just one person I was very scared, but then I found out I would be living with 4 people and I almost told my mom I'd rather stay at home. After going through this year with them, we formed this bond that if you have lived in the same room with 4 other people you'd understand, but if you haven't you wouldn't get it. It wasn't the easiest adjustment and because we are girls, there was PLENTY of drama. No matter how much drama we've gotten ourselves into, how many fights we've had, how many tears we've shed, and how many laughs we've shared, I can truly say that I will be friends with three of these girls for the rest of my life. So I guess this observation isn't just about how college is weird, but also that college forces you to grow up. It forces you to go out and make new friends on your own without your parents there setting up "play dates" for you. It is a little peak into the future of what you life will turn out like, and  NEWS FLASH: you get to choose everything without getting any criticism from your friends from home or your family. College is an unexplainable experience that if kids younger than you ask "what is college like?". You can tell them stories of your years in college, but everyone has a different college experience that is as unique as the person living it.