Good Morning Freshmen

Good Morning Freshmen and welcome to the first long weekend of college.

Some of you have decided to go home for the long weekend.

I get it.

It’s weird to spend your first weekend on campus and have nothing to do. You barely have homework yet. You haven’t made a ton of connections. You’re missing your boyfriend/ girlfriend/parents/friends/ dog.

Some of you have stayed on campus to attend the big football game.

You are dressed head to toe in your college gear and are ready to tailgate, cheer, party and engulf yourself in all things college.

You are confident and social and are ready to embrace your new 20,000 besties.

Some of you are sitting in your dorm room.

Shy and unsure what to do with yourself. You’ve met people, but no one really to connect with so you kinda are just winging it thru the weekend.

You’re checking social media; feeling pretty confident everyone you know is having an amazing first week; except you.

Some of you are in between.

Doing a few things.

Making some friends but just still feel … weird.

It’s not home.

It’s not what you expected.

It’s kinda what you expected.

The bed is kinda lumpy.

You are loving being independent.

You miss the security you felt at home.

You love the freedom.

You hate feeling alone.

Everyone else has friends already.

Dear freshmen- I’m here to tell you that everything you’re feeling..

is normal.

It’s hard.

All of it.

Figuring out the washing machine and introducing yourself to 1500 new people.

It’s hard to be “on” all the time when you just want to close your dorm door and cry.

Your mother is telling you to keep your door open. Put yourself out there. Go to activities.

You have no one to go with.

You have people to go with who you aren’t sure you love just yet.

You thought this was great but today it’s not.

But the day before it was.

This is called life.

Sometimes it’s great and sometimes it’s not.

Sometimes you feel awkward and sometimes you’re confident.

At 54; I feel all that too.

This takes time.

Don’t believe everything because what appears to be is not always what it is.

Dear freshmen in college

You are enough.

You are strong and loved.

You got this!