[Dear College Student] What College Isn't...

I was definitely the girl that thought college would be my escape. I could not wait to pack my bags and never come back. As dramatic as that sounds, I see so many of you hoping for the same thing. While college is an amazing experience and being away from home can be liberating, it does not take away all of your problems. I remember thinking, "I'm not going to be unhappy anymore and I can do what I want and I don't have to see certain faces anymore." Those thoughts satisfied me.

I went to college. Six hours away from home.

I was so wrong. I felt even more conflicted than before. I tried to shut everyone out and tried to do life on my own. Which is a zero out of ten, I do not recommend! lol

I say this all because I don't want anyone to make the same mistake by idolizing an imaginary place where only happiness exists. Spoiler alert: college is not that place! and that place is definitely not on Earth.

"I think we worship these stories of leaving it all behind and going somewhere else new, but I'm beginning to see that every one of those stories has the same truth holding up this romantic idea of leaving: The stuff you're not facing will follow you. It will get in the car too. It will pack a bag too. Leaving isn't the key; changing is. I'm learning that life isn't about the destination we can boast about getting to; it's about all the walking in between that feels pointless when you try to take a picture of it because no one will understand it like you do." -Hannah Brencher, Come Here Matter-

Don't be afraid to face the things that once will terrify you. Don't be afraid to heal either.

                                                                                                         with love, Renisha