I grew up hearing that college would be the best years and, honestly, I pray to God that they aren't.

I sincerely hope that the best years of my life will not be ones spent getting drunk three nights a week and playing pong with frat brothers. I truly hope I won't look back on all my late night trips to Pizza House and Lincoln Diner and consider these the best times of my life. It's not that I'm not having fun, because trust me I am. It's more that I hope for a little more out of the best years of my life.

I hope the best years of my life are spent waking up next to the love of my life. I hope that I have a relationship that gives me more than this college can give me. I don't want meaningless partying to be the best years of my life. I want my best years to be spent with my future family and, hopefully, lots of animals. I hope the best years of my life will be filled with conversations that are more important and enriching than who the cute guy on my hall is hooking up with and what frats are going to be open on Thursday night. I don't want to wake up one morning when I'm older and realize that college was the best years of my life because, while this is fun, I hope I can get a little more out of life. I don't want to wish that I was still meeting new people every night and forgetting their names by the morning or crying about how I spilt red juice on my new white top. I know that there is more out there for me and for everyone.

I hope the best years of my life are spent working at my dream job, surrounded by my best friends and my family. I hope that I get to spend once a week watching stupid TV shows with my besties and drinking wine in our PJs. I hope I laugh so hard I cry and I hope that I have a place to call my own home. I hope that I have a little girl, a little boy, and a loving husband. I hope I have both time to myself and time to spend with everyone I love.

Most of all, I hope the best years of my life aren't spent drinking crappy beer in crowded frat basements. I hope the best years of my life aren't the ones where I'm freaking out about my midterms. I pray to God that life has something a little more important in it, for me and for everyone else.