Living on campus has led to me overthinking a lot recently. I have thought about family, friends, and old relationships I once had. I have noticed a change in my personality and physical appearance. I do not feel like a college student yet, and it still seems impossible that I am living on my own attending Penn State University. One thing I especially miss and think about are my friends back home. During the summer we spent every day together. We hung out every night and it was very unlikely to be home before 2 a.m.
There are around twelve of us. I have a huge friend group that consists of people I have known since early elementary school. They are my absolute best friends and we have been together for such a long time. We have so many great memories together but my favorite was definitely getting to spend a week at Ocean City, Maryland, with all of them. We bonded so much over that trip and learned so much about each other. It was definitely a trip to remember because many unexpected things happened that made us even closer.
Many of them stayed back home and chose to attend Penn State Altoona for college, but the others went to campuses all over. My best friend attends Duquense university which is in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The day I said goodbye to her was really sad, many tears were shed. She is only about two hours away, but realizing she was no longer a ten minute drive away hit me really hard. Although we are farther apart, I feel like I am closer to some of them. I get to talk to them everyday and know everything going on, but unfortunately some of them have not stayed in touch as well. I am excited for Thanksgiving break to see them all again, it will be like the good old days.
One thing in particular that I am worried about is losing some of them because of the distance. I am still very close with all of them, but I fear things could change eventually. After college we all have big plans. It is exciting yet scary all at the same time that my future is right in front of me apporaching quickly. I want to take this time to learn and grow as a person. With 2020 coming to an end, I wanna set goals for myself for next year to work on who I want to be and who I want to put out to the world.
My main goals are to work on my confidence and to exercise more to make myself feel better. Going on walks is something I really enjoy and I started running around campus which is a nice break away from the dorm room and homework. Doing these activities and having mental reminders give me a lot more motivation which helps me become more productive throughout the day. More places are beginning to open back up due to the closure of places from the corona virus. The IM building on Penn State’s campus is now open and I hope to go there soon to be able to workout. This will be something beneficial to add to the daily routine.
Making time and focusing on myself will be good for me and help make this time a little less stressful. I know everything will workout the way it is supposed to.
The IM building on campus
My close friends from elementary school
Most of my friends and I stayed home instead of going to our respective colleges this semester. I also hope that I can remain close to them when we eventually go in-person to places all over the eastern U.S. Running has helped me feel much better throughout my day as well.
I felt the same way during my first year, granted almost everyone in my graduating class now goes to Penn State. But always remember, communication and keeping in touch is a two way street and shouldn’t always be one-sided. You’ll form new relationships in college and the relationships that are meant to stay, will stay.