Written by: Udita Bharadwaj
Graduating from high school had signified an intangible loss of youthfulness and predictability for me. Now that all the facilities that the world had to offer were available to me, I had no idea what I would be making of myself. When preparing to go to college, everything that I had learned had appeared less to me.
Will I ever be enough for my own self? Will I finally become the person I’ve always wished to be? Will I be able to have memorable experiences in college? Now that I’ve found answers to my questions, I can say with certainty that what you lose as you grow also makes you gain more, and I find it necessary to understand our losses and gains in more abstract terms.
The fresher in you is a canvas that will get painted by all the lessons you learn as you navigate through your college life. People you love or hate may or may not be there for you as you go through many of the sad and happy times that life gives you, but you will always be there for yourself. Allow yourself to experience all the happy and sad times fully. Learning through new experiences will make these teachings stay with you for a long time.
As you unpack your things and decorate your college dorm room for the first time, realise what’s changing and what’s important. As you lay in bed at night and miss your family, remember that you will grow into these feelings. As you prepare for your first day of class, know that now you can finally make your life into its greatest story. And as you look back in the past and reminisce, notice how much you’ve grown since being a fresher and maybe you’ll thank yourself for persevering.
The fresher in you will give and has given you space to grow and in return, give understanding and time to that fresher. All of these understandings have been important for me as I prepare to think beyond my last year in this college. Many times, when I was a fresher, I had missed my high school life but now that I am in my final year, I have also started missing being a fresher.
This longing to be in a new chapter of my life again has made me realise that, what you will have before entering college and what you will leave with once you’re done with your degree will all eventually be cherished.
