“Abby K. is Jasper Newton Foundation’s last intern to leave the office before starting college and she wrote up some interesting points she learned in college and still continues to evolve and grow with the challenges and victories she faces each year in school.”
This year while away at school, I learned a lot. A lot of a lot. I learned that waiting to do your laundry until your only clean clothes are the ones you have on is not ideal because every time, without fail, a washing machine is never open when you need one. Who knew that Oreos are extremely expensive when you buy them every week, well I do now. I also learned things like how to identify every major Italian Renaissance artist by their style and why I can grow giant flowers in Alaska but not in Indiana. I learned that I thought I knew how to manage my time in high school, but I didn’t. Balancing school, sports, clubs, church, and life seemed easy until I realized my mom did most of the balancing for me. Who would’ve thought remembering to go get dinner at the dining hall would be so easy to forget?
In college, professors don’t make it hard to fail. Doing your work and putting in the study hours is not optional even if they say it is. That was not a pretty lesson to learn. I also learned that making friends and getting involved is hard. I think one of the few disadvantages of growing up in a small town is that everyone has known everyone forever and ever. Trying new things, especially in high school, wasn’t that hard for me because I already knew everyone involved before the first day.
I went to a college where I knew nobody. Literally zero friends on day one. I didn’t realize how hard it would be to find the courage to get involved and put myself out there. Walking into a place where I knew no one was something that had never really happened to me before, and it took some major adjusting. But stepping out of that comfort zone is 110% worth it.
College seems to have this unique way of bring people together that wouldn’t normally find each other. Learning about other lifestyles and seeing different points of view is completely eye-opening and an opportunity I hope everyone can experience at least once in their life.
