Before I sat down to write this blog post, I took a minute to skim through all of my weekly posts throughout the quarter. It’s funny to look back on things like that, everything that happened over the quarter, and pay attention to little changes or hopes that have morphed into something completely different. Whether it’s reality or something a little farther from it, there’s something so beautiful about looking back at it all to see how everything has changed. Because I have officially finished my first fourteen weeks of college— one quarter down, and to my parents hope, only eleven more to go.

These past fourteen weeks have been a complete whirlwind of new experiences. From taking even more initiative of my education than I used to building a life for myself outside of Folsom, there have been a lot of changes. I know that I walked into my first quarter of college with a bit of uncertainty and a whole lot more hope— it was a new beginning, where’s the fun in it if you can’t get a little excited? Despite the amount of studying or the immense amount of sleep I’ve lost over the quarter, I think college is becoming quite the journey. I’ve met dozens of people and heard countless names that I may very well never hear again, but I have also found a handful that I think I am going to hold onto. I think that’s sort of the point. We might learn a lot of new things or meet a lot of new people, yet somehow there are a few are truly going to mean something to us.

And when they do, that just makes everything so much more special.

I think one of my favorite things about college so far is the fact that I go to the same school as my twin brother… I mean, how fantastic is that? I’ve made a lot of memories here, but I think one of the best ones that represents who we are happened over Halloween weekend. The Friday night before Halloween, I was hanging out/taking care of a friend that night who was sick and somehow made it back to my room at 5AM only to find someone else sleeping in my room who didn’t belong there— sleeping in my bed. I was not about to sleep on the floor in my own room, so instead, I called Nick and walked all the way to his dorm to sleep in one of his extra beds. Lucky for me, he’s a pretty stand up guy who got out of bed to let me in at that unruly time of morning. As just one of many reasons going to the same school as him has been great, I also get the luxury of having two sets of dorm homes and therefore, two sets of people to get to know better. I guess that’s one thing that Cal Poly has that Howard did not: Nick.

One of the best things about new paths and beginnings is just that— the beginning. The decisions we make and the people we just happened to run into somehow always seem to have some sort of impact on who we become. It’s the uncertainty that comes with every opportunity, or in the words of Chris Brown, “How do you let it go when you just don’t know what’s on the other side of the door when you’re walking out?” With college, there was no option but to walk through that door with our heads held high, ready to face whatever came to us. As much as I appreciate the security of knowing where I’m headed and what is going to happen, I can also find the beauty in not quite being able to see what our futures hold and being okay with it. If I always needed that security in my life, I probably would have gone to Howard because I knew where I stood and what I was up against. But here at Cal Poly, I was almost thrown into it a month before I would have started in DC. That’s the beauty of the unknown, of taking chances that are no longer guaranteed— it just might send you right where you needed to be.

After fourteen weeks, this is the beginning of the end and I must say, this quarter has been incredibly unpredictable. There were ups and downs, late nights and early mornings, and an immense amount of firsts that I have lost count of. And somehow, it’s all over now. My last final was yesterday and I am one third of the way through my freshman year. Truly, I am excited to see what comes to me in the future and I also cannot wait to be back in Folsom with friends and family for three weeks. Not to mention, a brand new Barnes & Noble that I plan to spend far too much time in. It almost feels like I have created a new life for myself here, with a new definition of who I am and a new group of people to share it with. As much as I’ve changed over the quarter, it’ll be interesting to see what kind of person I’ve become, how much I’ve really changed once I settle in at home. Today, I’m about to return to the old life and same people that built me up into the person I am today— I can’t explain how excited I am to just relax and sit back for the next three weeks. I hope everyone traveling has a safe trip home or wherever you may be headed, and is welcomed back with open arms.

So here’s to the holidays and the blessing it is to have something to return to. Happy Holidays everyone.