You graduated high school, and the possibilities are endless for what’s next. So what do you do?

You chose to climb a mountain.

You get to your destination and you stand at the base taking it all in. It’s tall, wide, scary and magnificent.

You have never done anything like this before but you think you’re ready.

You have absolutely no idea what you’re doing and yet, you jump right in starting to move your way to the top.

It’s easy at first; you just start to walk right up. Little to no work needed, the incline is smooth and flat.

Not too far in and the incline starts to steepen and you’re getting a little nervous. You doubt yourself and wonder if you should really be doing this.

You start to get tired but keep pushing along as you aren’t sure what else to do.

Soon you realize that maybe it’s not wise to climb it all at once, and so you decide to break it up into pieces.

It starts to get a little easier as you’ve gotten your footing and gained a thick skin.

You are about a fourth of the way up and you’re feeling good. Amazed at how fast it went looking back down to where you started.

You take a small break, and shortly you start pushing right back up the side.

It’s significantly harder than when you first started, but you’re more confident this time.

You pick up some things along the way, cool souvenirs and memories to take with you. Your load gets heavier, but you just work harder.

The terrain is getting rockier and you might slow down a bit, remembering to take it piece by piece.

Step by step you don’t give up, focusing on work now and dreaming of the top in the future.

Halfway there and you have another little break. You look back and wonder just how the hell you are even doing this.

After you rest up a bit, you get right back to it. Just like the time before, it’s a lot harder.

The incline is almost directly up and you are figuring out how to take on this next piece.

The path seems almost impossible and you want to just turn around and be done with it.

After yet another self-given pep talk, you remember how good it will feel to be at the top and so you keep climbing.

You’re almost three-quarters of the way there and you slip…falling back a little.

After learning what went wrong, you figure out how to adjust and move right back up the mountain.

You are determined now more than ever as you make it past where you previously fell back.

75 percent of the way there and you’re exhausted, enjoying your last break before you dive into the hardest part that is the last fourth.

You’re almost to the top and there is no stopping you now.

Like a pro you move over the rocks and obstacles and know how to get through the rough terrain.

You can really see the top now, after all this work you are almost there.

You’re incredibly nervous to make it to the top as you aren’t entirely sure what will happen for you after.

Nonetheless, this is what you’ve been pushing toward and you move past the last few obstacles and steps.

Finally, you make it to the top. Exhausted, emotional, you take it all in.

Looking back down at everything you did to get here, all the work, and all the memories you had while taking the journey.

You decide to climb a mountain. College is a mountain and will be one of the biggest we have to climb in our lifetimes. It seems like something that just everyone does and if everyone is doing it then it’s not a big deal. What we do is amazing, and you should be proud of yourself every single day for what you’re working for.

We doubt ourselves immensely and most of the time it feels like we have no idea what we are doing. Remember when it gets to be too much, take a break and remind yourself of your end game. Break it up into pieces; do what you can do piece-by-piece. We don’t need to take it on all at once.

We slip and fall back. Maybe we need to retake a class or two. Maybe we need to take a semester off to get our priorities together. Maybe we just need a break. It happens.

College is a mountain, and we are climbing it. Be proud of yourself and enjoy the journey because the destination will come soon enough. Believe in yourself.