Final semester

On Tuesday, I bumped into my academic advisor in-between classes. He asked me, “How does it feel now that it’s February and it’s your final semester?” In a nutshell? Shocked. The fact that nearly four years has gone by in the blink of an eye and here I am at 22 years old is mind-blowing. Despite all this, I’m comfortable. Sure, it’s sad that I’ll be graduating in three months, and there are plenty of friends that I will not be able to regularly see after this, but it’s a new chapter in my life. I’ve learned that instead of focusing on the past and how much fun I’ve had here at HPU, it is now my time to look ahead and see what the future has in store for me.

I’ve got plenty of reasons to be excited. But then again, who doesn’t? It’s all a matter of perspective. If you’re a graduate and you’re constantly focusing on how you wish you were back in college or how you could have taken an extra year, you’re bound to be miserable. If you’re spending your time thinking about all the possibilities and things you can change for the better, you’re going to be very happy. As one of my favorite quotes says,

“Good and bad days happen. But life is about a billion little moments that add up to all the things around you. If you let one of those moments have too much control then you are bound to be mostly miserable.”

As I said, it’s simply a matter of perspective.

So, instead of getting caught up in the idea that you’re going out into the “real world” soon, just embrace it. While you’re here, though, please do whatever it is you want to do during your final days here at HPU. Enjoy it and live it up while you can. If there is a time to do stupid stuff and get away with it, college is that time. But when you’re walking on that stage and you’re handed your degree, things change. Last May, I went to graduation to see one of my best friends graduate. It was this very odd and yet very exciting feeling to think that was going to be me next year. Maybe it was me subconsciously accepting that my time at HPU was coming to an end. Anyways, it’s our time this year.

My senior year, I was a teacher’s assistant for the English department. One of the teachers whom I helped very often was a very nice lady. Still one of my favorite people on this planet. When we started talking about me going off to college, she talked about how important it is that I take it seriously. She said something that has stuck with me ever since. She said, “With privilege comes responsibility.” Since we are fortunate enough to go to college and get a degree, it is now our responsibility to go out into the working world to get good jobs so we can provide for our families and our children can continue the cycle. It’s tough to believe that things are changing for us, but it’s also interesting because we have so many possibilities right now. So be happy, and go change the world. It’s our time now.