As many upperclassmen already realize, and freshmen soon will, settling into a new place can be a great undertaking. For some, college easily becomes an extension of where they have come from. For others, it is a new adventure where they can redefine themselves. For yet another group it may be neither, just where they happen to be at the moment. But whatever your category or purpose for continuing on in this labyrinth of curricula, you are here, and hopefully will be for another few years – so why not make the most of it? Some of the best advice I ever received when I went off to college: Never compare where you are going to where you have been. From church to friends to activities to teachers, nothing will be exactly the way you have always known it and you should not compare it as such. I am not saying you should immediately ditch all the old for the new, but definitely be open to new things. Finding a friend group will not come immediately and will most likely change many times. Clubs, organizations and just plain mingling can help with that. Finding a church will be important if you are used to regular attendance, and even if you aren’t, it can keep you grounded and become a great outlet for serviceand activities. But you should not hold to the belief that your past friend group or church is any better than or cannot be lived up to here. Maybe it won’t be the same, but isn’t that sometimes a great thing? I know this is never the easiest concept, but when you let go little by little, you gain more appreciation for where you are and it makes the acclimating process much easier. I know it is tempting for some to simply go home every weekend or close to it. I also know that certain circumstances or relationships might keep you wanting to go home that often. But thankfully, exploration is not dead and there are so many hidden things to do (around town, around campus, fun road trips to take and new people to meet) that there is no reason to continually go home. You will be left wondering why you haven’t done many of the things you hear about on campus and will eventually miss out on something great. Your parents would probably say otherwise, and I know it can be difficult to leave that best friend you have had since kindergarten, but everyone is growing up. Don’t you think you deserve some growing up space as well? The last thing I want to do is become the Ouachita broken record that says, “Get involved! Get involved! Get involved!” But honestly, when you attend a small school in a small town, how else do you suggest keeping busy and having fun? Find something you’re passionate about and chances are there is already somebody at Ouachita who has started a club about it or a group about it or just gets together because they have that passion in common. So, get involved. Make the most of the time you have here because as a senior, I have no idea where the time went, but I believe that’s because I was too busy making the most of it to pay attention.
By WHITNEY CREWS
Opinions Editor
