About a year ago, I was in your shoes. Just like you, I was moving into my first apartment, excited by the unknown and the idea of being completely free. No dorm room R.A. rules to follow and no parents to tell you what to do. I was happy to be living on my own, anxious to see how my roommates and I would get along, and nervous at the aspect of caring entirely for myself. I was now my own responsibility. It is absolutely crazy to look back at all the things that have happened in that time.

In the last year, I have seen myself blossom. And now it is your turn to blossom, too. You will learn how to cook, clean, organize, and all around manage your time and life. You'll be spending a lot of time in my room, I hope you know. You'll sleep there, get dressed there, do homework there, hang out there. I will try to make sure I leave it SUPER clean for you (cleaner than it was left for me). In the way back of the big closet I've written my initials, just so a part of me will always be left in the space. I will really miss it, but I know it is time for you to make it your own.

In the last year this room has seen a lot of laughs. Throughout this same time, this room has seen just as many tears, a lot of times it was from all of the laughing. It has seen countless all-nighters, endless drunken slumbers, and many snoozed alarm clocks. I've had many late night thoughts, as well as early morning realizations. I fell in love in this room. I fell out of love in this room. My roommates and I started as stranger, became friends, and ended as family.

I hope you know that these four walls were so much more than just that to me. I hope that the peeling paint and the wooden door-frames help you to grow in the same way they have helped me. Do not ever take them for granted. Someday, whether it is a year from now or three, you will be packing your belongings into boxes, loading your things onto a U-Haul, and sweeping the empty floors clean. The sad thing about first apartments is that leases end and people outgrow them, leaving as a different person as you entered, with your television and broken lamp on the first day. Please treat my room with respect and love, and handle with care. She is yours now.