Dear good ole sophomore year,
You gave us one hell of ride. There were some great times and some damn awful ones. We stepped into the great unknown of sophomore year with high hopes and the novelty of college a little worn off from freshman year. Many times we caught ourselves asking ourselves if we were growing up, or just going down.
However, once we really got into it, we quickly discovered that life just got a whole lot more serious, a whole lot faster than expected. We learned a lot about the world, about college, but most importantly, about ourselves. We learned that there is nothing wrong with coffee at midnight. And there is nothing wrong with making the second pot only an hour later.
We learned that those classes you thought were going to be an "easy A" are only "easy" when you work your butt off.
We learned that the library is more than the building that hosts the Einsteins or Starbucks. It's really a place where dreams go to die after five hours of studying.
We learned that those friends we thought were our "people" really are not for us.
But then we also learned that we will find our people, and they are here to stay; whether it is an ice cream run at midnight when you're sad, dragging you away from Netflix on a Friday night, or being your biggest cheerleader.
We learned that a wine hangover and a 8 a.m. test are not the best mix.
We learned that sometimes, even if you have a to-do list a mile long, taking a nap is OK.
We learned that people leave, no matter how much we yearn for them to stay. But we also learned to watch them walk away because you don't need them anymore.
We learned that some of the best nights are unplanned nights with friends and ice cream, and loud music at ungodly hours of the night. We learned that it's OK to change your major. Why get a degree in something you hate?
We learned that everyone needs to experience staying awake and partying with your best friends for over 24 hours and that it truly will be one of the best memories.
We learned that what it really takes in life, is a taking names attitude, self-love, determination, a kind heart and loved ones at your side.
We learned that this year, and life in general, is going to throw you many curve balls and knock the walls down on you, but in the end, you will so grateful you pushed though and survived.
We learned that at the closing of the year, we look back and wonder how the hell we came out the other side. But hey, you made it. You took some losses, you reveled in victories, had some of the worst times, and had some of the greatest times of your life. Look at you now!
"And once the storm is over you won't remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won't even be sure, in fact, if the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm you wont be the same person who walked in. That's what the storm is all about." - Haruki Murakami