With only two weeks left in my undergrad career, I'm becoming more and more reflective and reminiscent with each passing day. I realized that one of the huge components to my college experience was who I lived with in my four years.
Here is a thank-you note to each of the ladies I spent my undergrad years with.
Freshman Year
Living with an international student, especially as a freshman, was quite an interesting experience. You taught me that cultural awareness was so important on our campus. I learned so much about your habits, your traditions, your diet, and everything in between. Sure, we didn't really match (and you even moved out halfway through the school year), but you were a really big part of my first year in college.
Thank you for showing me that it's okay to be different. You had such a unique way of doing things, like what you did for fun or what you ate for each meal, and even though it could get really awkward at times, I really enjoyed learning from you.
Sophomore Year
I went from having a technical single to living with three of my closest friends in the nursing program. Now, it's a pretty common thing to hear someone say, "Don't live with your best friends," especially when it comes to living in on a college campus together. Honestly, it had its ups and downs, but I wouldn't have traded the experience for the world.
Thank you for dealing with me at my worst. I know I was super messy at times, and never being around only made it that much more difficult to confront each other about our suite, but you girls were truly so understanding. Huge shout-out to my best friend for being my roommate and being so easygoing and supportive. Thanks for wiping my tears, for waking me up when I slept through all my morning alarms, and for dealing with my pigsty lifestyle. (I love you, Magoo.)
Junior Year
It was really hard watching all my friends move off-campus while I had to stay in the dorms. It meant having to find someone new (and possibly random) to live with and spend an entire year with. Luckily, I was blessed with a girl that I gladly call one of the funniest, most sarcastic, and most caring people I know today.
Thank you for letting me be myself. You showed me that it's okay to be emotional or tired or just plain weird. Living with a stranger among other strangers made last year really scary, but I'm glad that I got to go through it with you.
Senior Year
They say that your last year of undergrad should be the best one out of all of them. Thanks to the three girls I call my apartment mates, it has been.
Thank you for being such amazing sisters. I truly mean it. In the short amount of time that we've all been together, I have felt nothing but love for you all, and if there's one thing I'm going to miss when I graduate, it's our little breakfast huddles on the weekends to gossip about what went down the night before.
A big part of who I am comes from the influence of those around me. I would not be this culturally aware, messy, strange, happy young woman if it weren't for the other young women I spent my last four years with.