By RACHEL EMERSON, Student Writer
I was always told college would be the best years of my life and I always laughed at the thought of it. But low and behold, I’ve learned it was true.
I won’t lie. There’s been several times throughout the years that I’ve thought to myself “this is the worst thing ever, I hate school.” Partly because I tend to be a tad overdramatic, but that’s besides the point. I just never understood how being broke, tired and hungry, while struggling to meet deadlines and maintain a decent (or in my case, striving for perfect) GPA could possibly make for the best years of my life. But let me tell you, they did.
However, it wasn’t the lack of money, sleep or food or really even the classes that made for the great in these past four years. It was all of the lessons I’ve learned through the years that I didn’t learn while sitting in a classroom or working into the late hours of the night on assignments I had been putting off for weeks.
Here’s four life lessons I’ve learned in college that I didn’t have to take a final over:
Don’t be shaken. You’re going to get worn out. You’re going to feel like no matter how hard you work, it’s not hard enough. You’re going to feel defeated at times and you’re going to want to quit. But don’t let those things distract you from finishing what you started, no matter what it is. When life gets tough, prove that you’re tougher.
Practice the 3 P’s. Patience, prayer and persistence. I’ve found that this works in just about every situation. Be patient with yourself and others, pray about it and don’t give up, no matter how hard it gets.
And don’t forget about the F. F is for friends {and friendliness}. One of the best things about college, especially a small college, is that you spend so much time with the people around you. This means one of two things: you either want to strangle each other or you become best friends, sometimes both happen at the same time. Either way, these people are your people for the duration of your time here and you’re all in this together. Be friendly to everyone you encounter in life, you never know what may come of it.
Find the good in every situation, even the bad ones. Nothing is 100 percent bad. There’s good in everything, sometimes you just have to look harder. This one is hard to do. When you focus on negative outcomes, the only outcome you can get is negative. Find the good and focus on it and chances are you’re way more successful.
In all 23 of my years, I have to say the last four I’ve spent in college rank at the top of the list of good ones. I don’t know what the future holds, but I know that in 10 years it won’t be the initial challenge I faced that I remember, but how I overcame them and the memories I made along the way.