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Volume 16, Spring 2004 |
Opinions
Live It To The Fullest
Staff Writer
I can hear it in the back of my mind. I think about it every day. I wonder about the impact it will have on my future life. Even today, I still lose sleep, thinking late at night about whether I have lived my life right.
College graduation.
Every college senior worries at least once about graduating.
During the last few semesters of undergraduate education, every college senior worries at least once about graduating. The commencement ceremony, scheduled for May 14, 2004 is immensely important. We want to be there, to gather on the football field and to be in the program handed to both family and friends.
But, we need to remember, as college comes to an up-in-the-air close, it is also important to sacrifice a few credits here and there. After all, everyone needs some downtime in order to live.
One of my greatest faults as a writer is thinking too much. I'll admit it to those who have no idea who I am. Bear with me while I disclose my latest cause of sleep-deprivation; I tend to lose sleep while wondering if I will be able to wear my cap and gown come the end of spring.
I love college and I love classes; I love my friends and I love my experiences. But, at certain times during the past few years, I have found myself saying, "I hate," in the context of a number of those things I just listed.
Hate is a strong word.
Cliché and slap-me-on-the-wrist journalism aside, never forget as you walk to the front of the departmental ceremony, to receive your diploma (or lack thereof), that it is important to make love, not war.
Love defeat when it can be overcome.
Love life. Love being out of breath when it is healthy. Love triumph. Love defeat when it can be overcome. Love to do well. Love the struggle from which you know you will survive.
Does it matter if we graduate in the designated four years of undergraduate coursework? To some: perhaps. To me: not anymore.
I will complete my studies as my hard work and life together see fit. Will I procrastinate? Yes, I am not going to lie. Will I get good grades? I am crossing my fingers as I type this. Imagine the difficulty.
Will I say college became the best years of my life?
Will I say college became the best years of my life? I do not know. My life is not over, but I hope these years will be among the top in the ranks.
Be careful when thinking college is the only good that will happen to you over the years. You never know.
Remember the friends you would talk to late until at night, almost every night. Remember freshman year when all-nighter contests reached their peek at three or four in the morning. Remember the occasional three-day, no sleep records with Nelly's "Ride Wit Me," Bruce Springsteen's entire collection, Dixie Chicks' "Cowboy Take Me Away" and Wyclef Jean's "Perfect Gentleman," in the background on seven low (Wolfe Hall, that is). Those are memories I will never forget.
Smile about those times you shared with your friends.
Smile about those times you shared with your friends. Send an instant message to those whose memory instantly brings a laugh when you are about to cry. If they are special to you, call or send a letter; it's more personal and may come to them at a time when they need a good laugh or a good cry.
Say thank-you to those professors who bailed you out of difficult times, those friends and family who bailed you out of jail, and those who were not there during those times, but who are still able to laugh with you when you remember them.
Know what you want to accomplish in life without getting scared. If that is impossible for you, ask for help. After all, May can always seem somewhat far away. I am sure someone loves you enough to take the time.
Do not be afraid of leaving your friends for a few years to attend graduate school, to take a vacation, or to just spend your parents' money in continents away from ours. Bring a friend who can bring a part of home and a piece of reality to that continent with you. Or, bring pictures that can accomplish the same task.
Be a survivor of the want-to-pee-in-my-pants fear of commencement and commitment. Get scared if you have to. That is part of the adrenaline rush, at least for me.
Thanks for three years and counting, designated class of 2004.
Here's to three, four, five or more years at the College. "The Kat" (Kat-Man-Du) on Thursday nights will forever be a place for us to toast to one another, regardless of whether we know each other by name or know if the other is really of-age. Thanks for three years and counting, designated class of 2004.
If we have not crossed paths yet or if we do not know each other by name, congratulations on coming out of college: eventually; and, an all-inclusive "thank you" to every member of the faculty and staff who has helped us along our way.
Lauren M. Gallagher is a senior journalism/professional writing major with a minor in women's and gender studies. She spends her time writing, cooking, napping and laughing