Well... I don't know. College isn't bad, but I don't know if it's the best thing for me. You see... It's like going to an amusement park...

First, I went to the amusement park

In this analogy, it’s like walking into the adult part of my life, with all these fun choices and rides, and even weird fried foods to eat. But thennnnnn…

I had to find which rides I can ride

Some things I’m too small to ride, but the child rides are appropriate for children, and the adult rides are appropriate for adults, none of this “I’m an adult acting like a kid” nonsense.

Getting on the ride

I was fully able to get on the ride by myself, but not until after I had looked at the maps and directions and warnings and rules for the ride I chose, and even before that, I had to walk around and chose which ride! It’s like graduating high school and choosing a college; I had no idea if I’ll like it or not, but I’m going to try it anyway.

The lurch!

I’m seated and strapped in, and the ride starts. Sometimes my head jerks back a little because I wasn’t ready for it to start quite yet (the pain of summer ending), but then it’s a slow start, so I’m totally ready for the first plunge.

The ride

Plunge after plunge, loops and flips, curves and turns. Yup. That’s just like college for ya, or actually, it’s more like the directions someone get from someone when you can’t find your class like “so go down this hill, and across this patch of grass, down the sidewalk, around the building, up the stairs, and you’ll see a hallway and a door, then go left, it’ll turn a bit and then your room is on the right. I think.”

The finale!

"Just kidding! You're not done yet!" I still have the final plunge before the end. I’ve had ups and downs, a sudden jerk that threw me out of whack, and “why is the world shaking?” But it’s got to be over soon! I see the platform coming up, but I see it through a jungle of pillars that hold up yet another hill: finals. I’m heading up to it, the gears are grinding, the carts are clunking, and right at the top, I can only look down to where you’re about to plunge.

The crest of the hill

It’s not so bad up here, but I’m just waiting. Waiting for the study guides, waiting for the week I can actually start packing so I’m not living without a clean pair of jeans, and start cleaning so I don’t have to dust or vacuum again.

The fall

It really doesn’t take that long to do down, but if the ride has made you thoroughly dizzy, or bruised you from all the sudden turns, or made you sick in that final loop, you just want to be done. Don’t worry! It will all be over soon.

The stop

My body feels like it’s still running away with the speeding roller coaster cars, but I’m actually crawling to a stop next to the let off station. When I stop I sure do feel funny. Can I even stand up now? My legs are sore from hitting the sides of the car and against my friends, and I’m still kinda dizzy. But it’s ok! That first step will bring a wave of pleasure to finally be on my own feet, on a ground that will soon stop moving, and when I get some water you’ll feel better.

To be honest, I’m not a roller coaster person at all, so I don’t go to amusement parks. In this analogy that would mean I’m not cut out for college, and maybe so, but I will definitely try other rides and other ways to entertain myself, say at the pool or movie theater or the zoo before I just go home and do nothing with my life. However, now that I think of it, I have been wanting to read that book series lately… Maybe staying at home wouldn’t be so bad after all.