The Best 3.75 Years of Your Life
People do often refer to college as the best four years of your life. First of all: I didn’t believe that for a while, so if every day of the four years weren’t perfect, you aren’t alone. Adjusting to college was hard and I had challenging semesters. But when I started my senior year I was EXCITED. So excited. I had my best friend one room away, a social calendar full of events, a schedule of classes I loved with journalists I loved working with, and the anticipation of time-honored senior traditions.
And then the rug went flying out from under me. The Coronavirus Pandemic happened, which meant nothing I was looking forward to would happen.
This sucks. I don’t want the novel experience of being bonded as a generation who had an important portion of our lives de-railed and ‘graduated’ into a terrible economy. I wanted to climb the Bell Tower and leave my name on a brick. I wanted to play bar golf on Franklin Street. I wanted a Senior Pint from He’s Not. I wanted senior tea and brunch at Zeta. I wanted to wear Carolina blue in Kenan Stadium and hear my name called in Carmichael Arena. But, I won’t have those precious Carolina memories that other grads do. I know I’m not alone. Every other college student across the country feels this to some degree. This last blog post was supposed to be about making memories and the traditions that happen in a senior’s last two months at Carolina. But instead, my year was cut short, leaving out the best parts of senior year.
I’ve still experienced SO MUCH in 3.75 years at Carolina. Lots of FDOCs at the Old Well, a National Championship win, beating Duke in the Dean Dome, rushing Franklin Street, sunny Pint Nights at He’s Not, hilarious karaoke and trivia at Goodfellows, snow days on campus, sweltering days and cool night in Kenan, long nights in the editing suite of Carroll Hall, and LDOCs on the quad. I still have a lot of memories to take with me. Mostly from my senior year. This past year was the best of all. I had found my passion, my place, my people, and my purpose. I was so incredibly happy every day of this past year and it was a great way to cap off my time at Carolina.
No matter the mess that this year turned in to, I’ll still always be a Tar Heel: born, bred, dead.
