Well, it's officially (basically) the end of the 2018-2019 school year, which means it is also officially (basically) the end of my freshman year of college.

it honestly feels like just yesterday when I wore my UCLA sweatshirt on May 1st last year, excited beyond what I even thought was possible to embark on this new journey of my life. Going to college would be the biggest transition I would have had to make in life, and my nerves were out of control (but in a good way, mostly).

Before I knew it, it was September (shoutout @ quarter system) and I was already shopping for dorm room necessities. Little did I know, I was about to move into a literal shoebox and nothing would fit. And by nothing, I mean nothing.

Flash forward eight midterms, three final exams (and two more to go), and dozens of papers later, my freshman year here at UCLA is less than six weeks away from coming to an end (again, shoutout @ quarter system). And I'm not going to lie to you, although I am overjoyed and ecstatic about the fact that I won't have to read another syllabus until ~September~, I am pretty sad about this year almost being over. Because here's the fact, if one year went by this quickly, that means the next three will go by in a blink of an eye. I see senior almost-grads taking pictures around campus to commemorate their four years here, and all I can think is: 1) I don't ever want to leave this place, and 2) what the heck is life after college.

My freshman year of college has taught me a lot of things. For one thing, I definitely feel more independent. My #adulting has really played a big role in my life as I've started to buy my own groceries and figure out life on my own-ish. Not to mention, I've learned that even if your school's dining halls are #1 in the United States, there is nothing like your mom's home-cooked meals. I've also gotten a way better idea of my own identity, especially as I tried to figure out where I fit in at a school of over 30,000 extremely diverse students. As cheesy as it sounds, you really do "find your people" when you need to, and I could not be more thankful for that.

So, yeah. It does kind of suck that this amazing, life-changing year is coming to an end. But I also could not be more excited for what the next three have to offer. All I know now is that I hope they go by slowly because I am 100% sure that I am not ready to be done for good.

Sincerely,

A Sad, But Also Happy, Almost-Sophomore Gal