22 is supposed to be an exciting time full of opportunity and adventure. I’m here to tell you, as a 22-year-old, it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. It's a time of change in your life, but rather than being exciting and fun, it's mostly just scary. It's the end of an era in your life, and you didn't know how sweet it was until it was gone.
College is over.
College is without a doubt, one of the best times of your life. The actual classes are hard, but the life is good. You get to have four years to live with your friends, stay up way too late, go out on weekdays, and be in a community of young people enjoying their freedom. It’s a time when you get to do what you want and explore who you are. It’s free and it’s liberating. Once it’s gone, you never get to have it back. When you graduate, that’s it. You’re done with the college lifestyle you’ve grown to love, and it’s not easy to let go.
All of your friends move away.
When you first arrived at college, you were undoubtedly looking for friends. You were desperately trying to meet everyone you could and become best friends with anybody that would hang out with you. It was okay, because everyone else was just as desperate. Everyone was new there and everyone needed friends. These friendships are different. College is the first time that you’re living away from your family, so these friends really become your family. You live with them, they help you through your mental breakdowns, and they pick you up off of the sidewalk when you’ve had too much to drink. But when college is over, it’s time to move on. You’ll be friends with these people for the rest of your life, but they’re moving on too. Everyone trying to find a job that will, ultimately, them to different places. You’re used to being with these people every day, and now they are scattered all over the place trying to find their own way.
You have to find a job.
As your friends are moving on trying to find their own way, you have to be doing the same thing. You have a college degree, now what? Now you have to find a job. But guess what? It’s not as easy as it sounds. You just put in so much hard work, effort, and money to earn a degree that you are proud of, but you’re still not guaranteed a job. Lots of people have college degrees these days, and the job market is slim. Employers are looking for college degrees and experience, but you were getting your education, how did you have time to get experience? You might get lucky and end up getting your dream job right away, but more than likely, you won't. You'll probably end up being a receptionist just to make enough to get by. Then you sit at your desk answering phones all day thinking that you really didn’t earn a degree for this.
You have to be an adult now.
Being an adult is not fun. You might have thought you were an adult when you went to college and moved out of your parents’ house, but guess what? It’s not acceptable for adults to go downtown and get hammered on Thursday nights (Sorry mom, it happens). You have to be responsible and pay bills. You don’t have the freedom you’re used to. You’re confined by a 9-5 schedule and it’s honestly not very fun. It takes the spontaneity out of your day to day life. And trust me, you’ll miss it.
