May 16, 2010

Graduation Anticipation

While creeping on Facebook today,
I saw a wall to wall between two recent college graduates that read:
How does it feel? Its true; nothing will ever be the same, but that’s life. Things change and we get older. But here’s to life after. Life after good times and care free days of no responsibilities and crazy adventures. To all the people we have met, cried with, fought with, laughed with, and loved. Here’s to remembering with a smile and getting to live those days in the future with the people who shared those moments with you, even if it’s only for a while. Here’s to staying young and being happy. Here’s to life after college…. Cue movie montage.

That got a tear jerk out of me
even though I still have a year left.
It just got me thinking...
"Damn, I only have a year left before I'm in the same position."

In truth, I'm closer than I think.
This year, something happened that I never noticed before.
After people finished their finals,
they declared they were their next year
(i.e.: sophomores said "I'm a junior").
This was the first time I ever did it myself.
My fellow juniors and I joyfully yet somberly stated we were seniors.
I suppose our generation is becoming more excited to reach adulthood,
which is something I thought would never happen.

I've been prepared to live forever young since I reached high school.
Responsibility, stability, maturity: attributes I thought I could run away from,
but they're finally catching up to me.

So... what will I do now?
Will I begin to prepare for life after college?
Will I start searching for jobs and internships?
Will I look for apartments?
Will I consider moving back home? [I can answer that one now: nope.]
Will I become an advisor to those juniors under me?
Will I compare after college plans with others?

All of this is quite daunting.
[daunting: a word I used in every essay for finals]
I don't want to give up my care free days.
I don't want to say goodbye to my community of friends.
I don't want to stop procrastinating.
I don't want to grow up.
But I have to.

To those graduating this year, I salute you.
You are brave, braver than you realize.
You are my role models more than anyone older could be.
I will be watching you closely,
observing your success and mistakes
so that I might learn how to adapt to a world after college.
If this post has depressed you,
I apologize, but it needed to be written.
This is the wake up call me and my fellow rising seniors need.

So class of 2011,
are you ready?
Are you ready to prepare for the rest of your life?
Because I'm not.
But we'll get there.
We always pull through at the last minute.
Word.

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