Dear seniors of 2016,

We are finally in our last semesters of college and are about to join the real world. We are expected to be adults now. Some of us are about to start working at our dream jobs, and some of us brave souls are pursuing even more education. If you're like me, you are both nervous and excited for this next chapter. Sometimes you can't wait to join the world and make your mark, and other times you wish you could go back to watching "Rugrats" at 7 p.m. every night. There's no better time to reflect on on all the fun we've had than now, so here's a little class history for all of us from kindergarten in 1999 to senior year of college in 2016.

1999-2003

We were all five years old, and our parents sent us to kindergarten for the first time. The hallways of that elementary school seemed really big, and our parents walked us in on the first day. Gym class back then included those huge rainbow parachutes and endless games of tag. We made our first best friends, and we watched our favorite cartoons at our first sleep overs. When the millennial turned, the adults freaked out about computers crashing in something called Y2K, but our knowledge of computers stopped at the paint feature so we didn't really care. This first part of our lives concluded with the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and the beginning of a war we have yet to see the end of. We are special because we remember the attacks, but we were too young to be hardened by them in the same way as those above us.

2004-2007

We finally made it to the other side of the elementary school. We were finally the big kids for a little while. In fifth grade, we were subjected to those horrible puberty films and started worrying about how we would stay friends the next year when going to different middle schools broke up our friend groups. For some reason, boys and girls started holding hands, and everyone was angsty for no reason. We had to figure out lockers and how to fit in. The only good part about middle school was that everyone started getting cell phones so prank-calling your crush was way easier than before.

2008-2011

During these years, we tried to establish ourselves and figure out who we were. Junior high was a little better than middle school, and we couldn't wait for the freedom high school offered. Society changed with the election of the first African-American president. We friended everyone we thought we knew on Facebook, and a little blue bird forced us to convey thoughts and feelings in 140 characters or less. We started testing the waters, staying out past dark and scaring our parents. During this time, we balanced grades, sports, having fun and trying to get in to college. We got drivers licenses, went to prom and tried to make every second last. We took the ACT and SAT until we could reach our dream schools. We wanted so badly to be gone, to be free and to be adults.

2012

This was a big year for us! This is the first time we were seniors. We had to figure out where we were going and how to get there. We walked across that stage and threw our caps in celebration. We spent that summer holding on to our friends tighter than ever, knowing that we would probably never be the same when August forced us to move away from each other. At the end of the summer, we packed our car, our parents' cars,and maybe even the neighbor's car because we had unrealistic expectations about how much our dorm rooms could actually hold. We said goodbye to our parents and for the first time, were on our own.

2013-2015

We survived our freshmen year of college with livers mostly in tact. We got plugged in, joined clubs and found our place on campus. We learned that you don't actually need the books on day one of class (yay syllabus week!), and we learned to take some easy classes every semester. We figured out laundry and pulled all nighters with our friends. We got internships, took on leadership positions and stretched our minds and world views. We also turned 21! We had a lot of fun and uploaded way too many selfies on Instagram. Some of us found our person, and some of us found our forever careers.

2016

Here we are in our last semester of college. I'm guessing we're all worrying a little about what's coming in May. This time, when we walk across the stage, we will be adults taking on the real world. I know getting into grad school or finding the perfect job is a must right now, but don't forget to make this last semester count! We may be graduating in just four short months, but that is more than enough time to add to our history.