I can remember the overwhelming excitement I felt when I received my room assignment for my freshman year of college. I was #blessed with a quad filled with the most wonderful girls. I also got my very own XL twin bed that I, of course, bought the cutest comforter for. I also made sure to decorate every inch of the wall by my bed with pictures of high school friends and my cats. Once the unpacking was done, I was finally on my own, free at last! Never did I realize how important my dorm room would become in making my forever friends and lifelong memories. It was a safe space, one where everyone was welcomed.

Fast-forward to four years later and it is now officially my last semester at college! Living in a dorm can have its many perks, such as living on your own and doing what you want without being questioned. It also can have its downfalls, such as being old, dingy, and bland. On my campus, Founders Hall has the oldest interior. The closet doors creak, the carpets are older than my parents, and there is no pop of color that brings life to the building. Aside from having an outdated dorm compared to my friends at other colleges, my run-down dorm became my place of tranquility over the years. It’s so peaceful to open the door to my little “home,” decorated with my collages, posters, and a color bedspread. As much as I dislike the building and its size, all it really needed was some love and cosmetic work. Living in a dorm has also given me the opportunity to get a feel of what it is like to live with a roommate. Being a person who always had her own room, it was a big adjustment to sharing such a small space with someone else. Thankfully, I was blessed with my forever friends as my roommates, so there was no conflict. These tiny rooms housed some of the largest and most important moments I have ever made. There were countless nights of laughter, wine drinking, cuddling, crying, and secrets being shared.

As my time in my dorm is starting to come to an end, I have sincerely developed an appreciation for the opportunity to even be able to call it my home for 8 out of 12 months each year. I will miss the convenience of having my friends gathered in one space since we are all about to go our own ways and separate. I will miss decorating and redecorating the room each year with a new theme. I will miss living with my best friend. I will miss my parent-free zone. I will miss creating memories within the four white walls.Thank you for enduring all of the loud messy nights and wine spillages. You will be missed.

P.S. I will never in a million years miss the bathroom in my dorm.