Let me start off by saying that freshman year of college went by way too fast. With finals week upon me, and a whole lot of packing to do by move out day, there’s not much time to reminisce on the year now passed. Not many things will change when I leave my college home to go “home, home,” but the one thing that I’ll truly miss the most is my freshman dorm room.

I feel beyond lucky to have been blessed by the room choice gods with a full walk in closet, sky light above my bed, and enough space to have giant movie night whenever I want. Not to brag too much, but I totally won the dorm room lottery. So, learning that my sophomore year room will be approximately the size of my accounting textbook isn’t exactly something I’m looking forward to.

As I spend these last few days in my freshman room, I’ve started thinking of all the memories I’ve had in this room… good, bad, and everything in between. My room has become a huge part of my college experience and it is most definitely my happy place on campus. It’s seen Netflix marathons, late night Domino’s pizza snacks, the rush of early mornings, and has met each one of my friends throughout the past two semesters. At this point, I’m afraid to begin packing because I want it to feel like my room for as long as I can. Even taking down my wall full of decorations and cards from home feels wrong.

I understand that every college student must feel some sort of parting pain when it comes to seeing their empty room on move out day, I know I’ve felt it for weeks. In some ways, a college dorm ends up becoming a student’s home, so having to pack up all of the memories from the past year is tough. And it’s not just the room, or just the memories in it… it’s everything. When I first came to college, I was told that my dorm would be the place I sleep, study, hangout, laugh, cry, call my mom, and grow as a person. This turned out to be more true than I originally thought. Yes, I’ve become attached to all of the perks my room has (I’m really gonna miss my skylight). Yes, I will always treasure the best memories that have happened here, but most of all, I’ll miss the way my room feels. It really is home.

Moving on and moving out is something we know we all have to do at some point However, the suddenness of it all is what’s getting me. I’m so excited for the new students that live in this room next year, and hope they realize how lucky they got (seriously… walk. in. closet.) and how special this hall is. But what I hope for most, is that they’ll make the just as many memories in this room, and that it becomes their home too.