To all first-year college students on the night before move-in day,

There are hundreds of open letters such as this one floating around the internet, but I promise this one will be at least a tad different, and I hope worth the read.

The night before move-in day, I barely got three hours of sleep. My mind switched from extreme excitement to nerves that were absolutely off the wall. I was excited to start a new adventure that allowed me to start over and become a person I was more proud to be. But I was nervous that people would not like my new persona as much as my old one.

You are likely feeling something along these lines. And you likely feel as though you are the only one caught in this spiral of eagerness and hesitation, but you are most certainly not the only person feeling this way.

The night before move-in day will be one of the longest nights of your life. Longer than Christmas Eve in Kindergarten--when you were expecting a huge box from Santa the next morning. Longer than the night before your 18th birthday--when you became an "adult."

Even if you have friends from high school going to the same college as you, you will still meet many new people. And if you're anything like me, meeting new people is one of the most intimidating things you have to do.

You may spend the night before move-in day contemplating who you will be when you meet all these new people. But if I have one piece of uber cliche advice to give you in this letter, it would be to be yourself. Who you are when you first meet the people you'll be with for the next two to four years will be one of the largest ways they will remember you. And being someone you are not is not only hard, but it is not fun in the slightest.

Be someone you are proud to be. Be someone you want to be. Do not be afraid to switch it up from high school. You are not in high school anymore. You are going to be in a completely new environment, and you are most likely going to be with a brand new set of people. Don't think about it. When someone asks you a question, such as "what's your favorite movie?", Don't say some artsy indie flick that you think will impress them if your favorite movie is actually She's The Man. More than likely their favorite movie is something along the lines of She's The Man. Unless, of course, your favorite movie is an artsy indie flick, then, by all means, say that.

Move-in day will likely be the opposite of the night before. It will be a blur. It will be full of new names, faces, and places. As long as the night will be, know that the months to come will be different. College will go by so fast, so savor the slow moments that come before.

Sincerely,

Someone who has been there