“History will dictate what my legacy is. And 'maverick' is fine because I am.” - Al Davis, football coach
Around this time of year, a lingering sentiment begins to afflict graduating seniors. Suddenly, you feel like time just slipped through your fingers sometime between when you were cooking your Easy Mac and when you sent that last email to your professor telling them you couldn't make it to their last class because you were “sick.”
It is precisely at this point in the year when, on a typical Friday night, you're avoiding a party with your younger friends, sitting in sweatpants on your couch, and waiting for your Seamless order to be delivered to your apartment so you can continue binging whatever new season Netflix Original just released. All of a sudden, you stop and contemplate, “how did I get this boring?!” Last year, you spent your weekends trying to forget about your sorrows — grades, relationships, money, etc. The year before that, you spent your weekends out with people, who have since then been ghosted or are complete strangers to you now.
Much like the last few sentences, your life is overwhelmed with nostalgia, and at least a little bit of anxiety. BUT, you couldn't be happier. It's almost over, and soon you just won't be pretend “adulting;” you're going to be an actual adult in about a month. Life is happening, and it's time to start living it.
Just as this is all happening, you realize that what you do now determines how you will be remembered. Legacy is about learning from the past, living in the present, and building for the future. What will your legacy be?
Somewhere along the way, as people in your friend group changed as the years went on, you somehow became “the old guard.” Every friend group has the mom and dad figure, and when you're the oldest and most concerned one, that's you. While it is certainly exhausting to be the friend that everyone feels like they can vent to, you not only feel obligated to help whenever they need, but you also then develop the relationship between many as the person that they can say they are pretty close with.
You find people questioning, “Why are there so many people who can say that they're so close with this one girl?” and you start to think, “When did I become the voice of reason?!” Though you do wish your nights out didn't consist of taking care of a sad friend crying into their cheese fries, you feel honored. You feel honored in such a way that you will certainly miss these people when you're gone. If you're anything like me, you already have an idea what you will be doing after you finally graduate, and that could also mean you're moving away from your college town and will not be seeing these people that often anymore. Not only will you feel honored that you've helped, you'll be proud of who they become because you actually did have a part in it.
With the criticism you faced from changing over time, you really weed out the toxic people in your life and find out who your real friends are. These are the people you're going to really miss the most. The people who stuck around even when you didn't want to go to the party of the week, and they stuck around while you were depressed and not in a good place.
These people became your second family, and you sure know that you've found your future bridesmaids/groomsmen and the people you WILL make an effort to keep in touch with after college. You're really going to miss the golden years when you showed up at their apartments and said “get in the car, we're going on an adventure,” you didn't have a plan, and you had no idea where you were going. All you had was a tank of gas and some great music, and it was the best. #SquadForever
Gone are the days of being an angsty teenager/raging college partier. Your weekends are filled with homework, internships, jobs, etc. and the thing you look forward to the most is brunch. You used to be that person that everyone would always expect to be at the party, but you've taken a complete 180.
You have a different opinion about everything, you start to believe in the cliché of being more liberal when you're young then being more conservative when you get older and have to start paying bills. You work out now for your health, not your looks. You know how to cook food that's not just pasta in a box and some pre-made sauce. Maybe you're even in a serious relationship.
You're pretty much an adult, and you became the “lame one” among your friends. However, here's the thing: you're happier than ever. You've realized there's life after college, and all you want is that full-time job, house with the white picket fence, and peace. You're on your way.
BEST OF LUCK TO THE CLASS OF 2016!
