It’s almost time to leave for college! Between the excitement of the last day of that agonizingly boring summer job, the scrambling of packing, and the passive-depressive tone your mom gets while talking about “how much fun you will have at college this year”, you realize that there isn’t much time left before packing up the old family mini-van and driving miles and miles away. Whether it is your first year of college, or the year you will graduate, there are some things you must do before leaving town.
1. Take a day trip.
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That’s right. Just get in the car, grab a few water bottles, a GPS, and a camera, and drive until you find somewhere new. The great thing about being young—and gas only being a little over $2 a gallon—is that you have the independence to go on an adventure at any given moment. Once college begins, it won’t be as easy to just drive off into the sunset; you will have to focus your time and energy into getting that 4.0! So take this last opportunity of freedom to do what you want, without a professor weighing you down with a 30-page paper due 3 days later.
2. Cook dinner for your family.
Ever since you were a baby, your parents prepared your meals for you each breakfast, lunch, and dinner. In middle school, you decided to take a lunch, and each morning you woke up to your brown paper bag filled with a bunch of goodies and a “have a good day” note in your lunch box. As you got older, maybe you helped out with meals, or maybe your parents continued to cook for you. Either way, before going off to college, your family would love to have a nice, home-cooked meal together with you. Go out and buy the pasta ingredients; build a pizza from scratch; cook some syrupy pancakes and scramble some eggs; make that meal that your parents will appreciate, and tell them “thank you” for all that they have done for you.
3. Spend time with every family member.
Your grandparents, your parents, and even your siblings love you more than you can imagine. Sure, your boyfriend/girlfriend and your best friends do too, but they are also going off to enjoy their lives in college; your family is stuck in the bleachers, rooting for you to finish the pursuit that is college. Take some time to visit everyone—really visit, for several hours—so that your family gets one last moment alone with you before you go off to college and become a well-educated adult.
4. Spend a day alone.
Spending time with family is nice, but taking a day to reflect on who you are, and who you want to become this year in college is an important step in transitioning from summer to school-year. Make goals, write them out, and make them presentable so that you look at them throughout the year. Lay by a body of water, relax, and listen to music. Go do the things that you love: swim, bike, draw, sing, drive, eat, whatever! Taking a day off from social interactions is important to do before you move into a dorm with a roommate, or an apartment with several sub-leasers.
5. Pamper your pets.
Unless you live in a pet-permitting apartment during the school year, you won’t be seeing your pets, or any other pets for that matter, until you go home to visit for the holidays. Believe me, even your sister’s grouchy cat will start to seem adorable once you don’t see any animal life for a while. So, take your dog for a long walk early in the morning, play with your cat, feed your fish, buy treats for your rabbit, and make sure you get all your animal-lovin’ in before you have to leave them behind.
6. Clean your room.
One thing that I was really happy I did before leaving for college my first year was making my room as clean and organized as possible. I left two shelves open on my bookshelf to put things when I got back home; my desk was cleared completely; I washed my blankets and sheets and then made my bed look like an advertisement for a department store that sells bedroom furniture. I even pulled out all of my winter sweaters, dresses, and clothes that I would wear to church/Christmas parties/etc. so that I didn’t have to dig around in my closet to find them. Everything was completely organized, and when I got home for December break, it was so nice to have a livable space that I could move back into easily.
7. Give stuff away.
You probably won’t need all of those high school mascot sweatshirts, the pillow your ex-boyfriend made you, or the 15 Build-a-Bears that you made back in Elementary School. Donate all of those useless items, or give them to another, younger person who could use them! It will make your life a lot easier when you finally move out forever—less useless items to donate, less to pack into boxes, and less reminiscing to do.
8. Go to the corny hometown events.
You won’t be seeing much of your hometown once you leave for college—and you may even be too busy next summer to attend local events. So, my advice to you is to go to the local end-of-the-summer parade, the farewell picnic at your high school, or the last youth baseball game down at the diamonds. These are significant events that you used to look forward to as a kid, and will miss once you become an official adult.
9. Drive around town.
Right before you leave, take a drive around town. Drive past your elementary school, the place where you got your first kiss, the park where you fell off your bike, and that hill that you used to sled down when it was blizzarding outside. That dumpy old fast-food joint where you had your first job? You are going to wish you were back at least once when you are at school. Even the high school that you couldn’t wait to graduate from will seem inviting once finals week comes around. Go take one last look, for closure’s sake.
10. Kiss your mom goodbye.
Your parents are going to cry. You might not see it happen, they might wait until you are a mile away. They might not even shed a tear until they receive the “I’m all moved in!” text. However, leaving for college might be more emotional for the parent than it is for the child. Make sure that when you are all packed up to leave, that you walk over to your mom, and give her a big bear hug and sloppy kiss on the cheek. It will be the last one you will give her for at least a few weeks. Promise your parents that you will behave, that you will make them proud, and that you will call every week. They want to continue their involvement in your life, even though you are finally going off to live on your own.
