Growing up, we are told that eighteen is the age where we are an adult and that’s all there is to it. However, what happens when we reach that age and we feel entitled to the new, adult life we were promised but it’s not any different from the year before when we were a kid? At eighteen, we are at a crossroads in our lives. We have the opportunity to start fresh and find a new version of ourselves. Perhaps that’s why eighteen is that magic number in which our lives start to mold and shape into whatever we make them. As a college sophomore, I am more than elbow deep into my future plans and goals. I find myself baffled by the responsibilities I’ve taken on in just the short year and a half I’ve been here at Ohio State. So, as I worry about “real world” problems such as rent, utilities, and career planning on top of my already heavy class load, I find no problem in defining myself as an adult. Yes, I know I’m still in the dreaded teen years as I have yet to complete my second decade of living. However, does that discredit my ability to think critically about the world around me, and to make mature, adult decisions? Absolutely not. The problem with growing up in today’s society is that we are constantly told to strive to reach our goals, no matter our age or background, but when we do exactly that, the big kids laugh in our face. So, how do we change this perspective? How do we make “the man” take a step back and realize that we are here and we are ready to step into our shoes as the very near future leaders of not only the country, but also the world as we know it? We do exactly that. We fill those shoes like Cinderella rightfully filled her glass slipper and we fill them like they were made only for us. Our voices are one of the only things the big bad society cannot take away from us. So, why not use them and use them well? History will explicitly show that one single voice can change the course of the world as we know it. So, what happens when a whole group, a whole generation decides to say in one collective voice, “Hey, we’re here! We’re not going anywhere and we absolutely have a say”? Well, that would be quite a boisterous noise that would certainly be difficult for the rest of the world to push aside.