When I first stepped foot on the University of Georgia's campus, I felt very small. (Ok, at first I was thinking "wow this place is amazing", but I digress). College is a humbling experience. You are thrown into the waves of independence, socializing, and growth all at once. While all these things are exciting, the process of adjusting to college life can be tough.
Of course, there are those that automatically thrive when they get to college. It's like the town instilled some sort of superpower into these people, and everything clicks for them without a hitch. For the rest of us, there are growing pains involved. This usually entails quite a bit of tears, phone calls to mom, and angry rants.
The "growth spurt" of becoming a college kid is tough. And in the midst of adjusting to college, it's easy to look around and compare oneself to those around them. Some people look like they have their lives together: they joined a bunch of clubs and are super involved, or maybe they made a whole new friend group and are posting a million pictures with them.
Nevertheless, comparison runs rampant in the early months of college. It's easy to get caught up in it, and to then believe your self-worth is less than those who are "thriving". It sounds silly, but the trend is a common struggle.
I fell into this comparison trap. I thought that I was falling behind because everyone around me had made so many new friends, were getting involved in lots of clubs, and balancing school on top of everything. I was deceived because after talking to these same people a year later, none of us had it all together.
The truth is that adjustment is not a quick process and that you will get to where you need to be in due time. There is a reason you are standing where you are, it is by no accident that you ended up in the specific place you are in.
Looking back, I see God's hand through it all. In the moments where I dreaded getting out of bed, hated college, and was just so confused as to why I wasn't having a great time, God was simply molding my character. I am protective over the person I am today because it took a lot to get me here. And I wouldn't have traded any of my struggles for a simpler entrance to college life, because I love the person I am today.
The person I am today is much stronger. She's brave, confident, and ambitious. And I am proud of this. I am proud of my growth, and this past season of life has taught me that growth is not easy or glamorous or simple. Growth is complicated and painful.
Hindsight is 20/20, and that is why now, my struggles make sense. At the moment, nothing made sense, but looking back, everything does.
Our life experiences mold us. We are taken through our own individual struggles, and these create the person we need to be to carry out our life's purpose. My struggles are behind my personality, my major choice, my values, and my life.
My favorite bible verse is Esther 4:14, which says, "Perhaps you were born for such a time as this." The verse is from when Esther was chosen by a king to be his bride but was soon faced with the difficulty of standing up to him to save her people. Esther was Jewish and King Xerses I had given the order of the annihilation of the Jews. At this point in time, it took a lot of courage for a girl of Esther's age and background to stand up to a king. But she did and saved her people.
This became my favorite verse in high school, just because I thought it made life make sense. In college, I gained a whole new appreciation for it. Esther 4:14 gave me hope. It told me that I was here for a reason, this season of life had a purpose, and that in due time, my life's purpose would be revealed to me.
It's easy to compare and believe our lives to be worth less than those around us. But it's simply not true. Each of us are here for our special moment, purpose, and calling.
