I remember being asked nearly a hundred times throughout high school what my college plans were. I never knew what to say; I was still a year or two away, why would I need to know already? Once I started my senior year, I had an idea of a couple schools I possibly wanted to attend. My options definitely had their differences — 1,066 miles away, 82 miles away, or even just 35 miles away. Except, I would have never guessed my top choice would have been 1,066 miles away from home.

When I started telling others what my plans were and that my decision was to attend college in Florida, I was swarmed with infinite questions:

Aren't you going to miss your friends and family? Yes, Of course!

Aren't you going to get homesick? I'm sure I will sometimes.

Aren't you going to get upset when you can't come home on the weekends? Definitely, but that comes with long distance.

Why don't you just go to school closer to home? I need the experience of being independent.

Can't you get a Business degree closer to home? Sure can, but I don't want to.

All of these questions were asked over months of announcing that I would be attending college in Florida. Of course it was difficult to answer all of these questions and think to myself, "Wow, I really am doing this". It all started when I first stepped foot on campus in June 2014. Entering the campus through the front gates and seeing all the beautiful palm trees, being able to walk on the campus beach, and seeing the amazing atmosphere on campus, I knew this is where I wanted to spend the next four years of my life continuing my education.

Moving so far away from my parents was definitely rough, but it has provided with the ability to grow up. I can't just go home whenever I want. I learned how to motivate myself. I had to make new friends. This experience has made me become more independent.

Leaving all of my best friends was one the hardest things I've done. I never wanted to leave them and find new ones. I never knew I would find friends my freshman year that clicked like my friends and I did back home. But college isn't just all about finding new friends and making new relationships, it is about finding yourself. Even though I miss my friends and family like crazy, I know they are just a phone call away.

Of course, I have those days where I wish I could be home with my friends and family at different times. I hate not feeling well and having no one to care of me. I miss my dad's breakfast cooking. I miss my mom's homemade Mexican food. I miss both of my sisters' craziness. But I don't regret leaving Illinois to travel over 1,000 miles away to college in Florida. It has already taught me so much. I am still transitioning from living surrounded by corn fields to being surrounded by beaches and water, but I wouldn't want it any other way.