college & beyond.
by Amanda Huggins
College: The best four years of your life.
It’s a pretty bold statement. It’s something we’ve heard from friends and family time and time again. But is it true?
Part of me S C R E A M S yesyesyes,ABSOLUTELYYES.
But every time I hear that phrase, I get a little sad. The best four years… of my entire life? If that’s true, it means I have about a year and a half until my prime time is up and I begin my downward spiral into a boring abyss. And when I look at it like that, I hate that phrase. It’s inaccurate. So, So, So, inaccurate.
Don’t get me wrong, college so far has been amazing. I love Marist – love it. I mean, if every aspect of Marist College could be combined and put into a human being, I would marry it. That’s how much I love it. I love the library, I love the green, I even love the crazy squirrels that run around like they’re on crack.
But seriously, I feel completely at home at Marist … not only have I found a great group of friends, but I can honestly say I enjoy most of my courses – something I consider a rarity. In the past three years I’ve learned more about myself and the “real world” than I could have ever imagined, and with my trip abroad to London quickly approaching, I can only imagine the adventures that are in store. I’m really lucky, and when I think about all the great times I’ve had so far, yes, this has been the best two and a half years of my life. So far.
I just think that saying college is the best four years of your entire LIFE, is a little bit narrowminded. My whole life? Really??
Right now, I’m still making mistakes (but don’t tell anybody) and learning how to deal with the consequences. We all are at this age…and while that’s the beauty of the colliegate experience, I don’t necessarily want to label it as “the best four years” of my entire life. Its some of the best times, for sure. But I’m honestly really, really excited for what’s ahead. After graduation an entirely new chapter opens, and it’s one that I’m excited for. I’ve worked hard and I can confidently say that my future is bright – so don’t the years ahead deserve the same credit that’s been awarded to my college years? I’m more than confident that I’ll be having great experiences after I graduate, too…honestly, that’s the whole reason I’m so against labeling college as the best times of our entire lives.
Why should we limit ourselves like that?
When I’m a hundred and twenty years old and on my deathbed, I want to look back and be proud of my life. When I think about my “best” years, I truly hope I’m thinking about the friendships made and the experiences I’ve had at Marist. But I also hope my “best years” include the accomplishments and the good times in the years that followed college, too. The years that I accomplished my goals, the years that I traveled, the years that I cherished with family and friends. And of course, college will be a huge part of those “best” years of my life…but I hope there will be many, many more “bests” to come.
