Surviving Senior Year: Life Lessons

So just like with the very first column I wrote for Surviving Senior Year, it’s taken me a while to figure out what exactly I want to write for this one. My very last one.  Actually I should say it’s “taking me a while” because I really have no idea where this one is going. So bear with me one last time.

By Jenn Inzetta

When I started this column back in September I was just starting senior year.  I was both excited and terrified at the prospect of having just two semesters left of college, and now, two months away from the end of college, I’m just as excited and just as terrified. That much hasn’t changed. But a lot has changed.

I started this year with more responsibility and less time than I’ve ever had. And lots and lots of things that I wanted to accomplish, things I felt I needed to accomplish. Take the GRE. Write a senior thesis. Keep up my GPA. Remain involved in all of my extracurriculars. And on top of that I really wanted to make sure that I didn’t lose sight of my social life. I was determined to keep all aspects of my life in perfect balance. I was determined to figure it all out. I was determined to find answers, to figure out what I wanted to do and where I wanted to do it. But even though I accomplished pretty much all of my goals, I’m still no closer to knowing what’s going to come next.

I don’t know where I’ll be a year from now. I don’t know what path my career will take. I don’t know if and when I’ll go to grad school. I don’t know if I’ll become a writer or a wizard. I don’t know if I’ll ever find the perfect guy or the perfect pair of pumps. I don’t know if I’ll ever get to go to Greece…or if the closet I’ll get to that ancient city is watching Mamma Mia. Because senior year hasn’t given me the answers to my future. I don’t know any more about that than I did when I started. But I do know a few other things.

Senior year has taught me that I can handle myself pretty well in the real world. It’s taught me that most of the time I really do know what I’m talking about. It’s taught me that I’m a hell of a writer. It’s taught me that friends come and go, but the good ones always come back. It’s taught me that there’s a lot of different types of love. It’s taught me that there’s nothing quite like an iced caramel macchiato on a beautiful spring day. It’s taught me that we all need a mental health day every once in a while. It’s taught me that chocolate cake shots sound really great, but after the first three they’re just really gross. It’s taught me that there’s always an excuse for a new pair of shoes. It’s taught me that my GPA won’t matter in the real world. It’s taught me that I’m a tequila girl through and through. It’s taught me that sometimes ice cream really can cure all. It’s taught me that life will go on. It’s taught me to laugh it off. It’s taught me not to take myself so seriously. It’s taught me that college is ending is the rest of my life beginning. Mostly though, its taught me that I’m going to be okay in that big, bad post-grad world.

But I don’t have to face it just yet, so if you’ll excuse me I’ve got two more months of college to enjoy…