“I cannot wait to go to college!”
“Ugh, could school go any slower?! I just want to be a college student already!”
“Super excited! Just got my acceptance letter!!”
Sound all too familiar? For many of you, high school is in the final stretch. Just one semester separates you from college and freedom!
For those of you who already know where you are going, congratulations!!! For those who are still waiting to hear back from RIT or other colleges, best of luck!!! But I’m not here to just provide good wishes. I want you to slow down and take a moment to enjoy your final months as a high school student.
It’s exciting to know that a new chapter in your life is coming soon, but if you only focus on the future then you will never enjoy the present. I know it sounds cliché and you have probably heard this saying a million times, but few heed the warning.
These next six months are the only ones you will have where you do not have to worry about paying for college, the mountain of laundry you need to wash before your 8am class tomorrow, or even how to juggle academics, clubs, and a new social life. These next six months are really last ones you will have where you are a child.
Okay, so maybe that is not the correct phrasing, but still do not take this time for granted. Many of you will be going to college away from home and will not have the joys of going home to family everyday. Mom is not going to be there to make your favorite lasagna, your younger brother will not be there to goof off with you, and Dad will not be there to cheer you on at every game. When you go off to college, you leave part of yourself back at home because once you step foot on campus, you become someone new.
Cherish these moments! Enjoy as much time with your friends from high school as you can. Some of you may argue that you will still keep in touch, but once everyone goes his or her separate ways, the relationship changes. Not necessarily for the worse, but your friends will no longer be part of your life every day the way they were in high school.
Enjoy the moments with your family! Spend as much time with them. They are the ones who will miss you the most and although you may not admit it, you will miss them too. Even though I commute to campus, I spend more time at school than at home and even I get homesick despite living 20 minutes from RIT!
Finally, make some memories and have a few adventures while at home before you head off on your new adventure. At the very least when you get to campus in the fall, you will have stories to tell others!
My point is, and I cannot stress this enough - take a minute, slow down, and have fun! Best of luck on your future endeavors!