Going into college, many people focus on needing to find their "lifelong" friends right away, and they tend to miss out on the people that their souls are truly attracted to — people that they may connect with in a deeper way.

Before going to college, I watched enough videos and read enough books on "the biggest mistakes made my freshmen year" to last me a lifetime. So, by the time I moved into my dorm, I had a view on friendship that was in great contrast to my view of friendship in high school. I love my high school friends deeply, even the ones I don't talk to anymore, but in high school, you're confined to the couple hundred people in your school.

My outlook on life was shallow in high school and so was my reason for pursuing friendships — to not be alone. You don't have that much space to connect with different people, the ones that you haven't been having sleepovers with since the 1st grade.

In college, my wish and goal is to make friends that aren't just for temporary fulfillment, but include a lifetime of love and uplift.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you can't meet those very people in high school, because I most definitely have, but don't let that stop you from meeting great people at a time in your life when you're changing and growing as an individual. There are just so many people from so many different cultures and backgrounds in college.

Many people tend to make life-changing mistakes in college, but I refuse to lose myself to people with closed off minds and little dreams because they will only discourage me and the greater path that God has planned for me and that I wish for myself. I wish to meet people that are one with themselves and don't allow the opinions of others to sway their own choice of mind. I wish to meet people who can help me grow and become more loving, intelligent, expressive, empathetic, understanding, and passion filled.

But my wish is also to be that very person for other people. To inspire them and not suppress them because our paths are not the same. To have only pure intentions. To not be jealous because they're moving at a faster pace than I and achieving more than I have. Before I graduate, my wish is to be a better person that not only encourages myself, but that also encourages the people around me.