College, Chaos & the Art of Being Young

Being in college is basically reliving senior year of high school over and over again except now there are bills, questionable financial decisions, and absolutely nobody reminding you that your assignment is due at 11:59 PM.

Because really, what is college if not a very expensive group project where everyone is secretly wondering, “Do I actually know what I’m doing?”

We’re all trying to figure out where we belong. Who we are. What we want. Who we want around us. And somehow, while we’re figuring ourselves out, we’re also expected to learn finances, time management, relationships, boundaries, self-love, career goals, grocery shopping, laundry, and how to respond to an email professionally without sounding like a hostage.

And I couldn’t help but wonder: if these are the things we actually need to know to survive adulthood, why weren’t they teaching us this in high school?

But apparently, algebra was more important.

I mean, I’m sure knowing how to solve for X has saved somebody somewhere. I just haven’t met them yet.

College is an emotional rollercoaster. One minute, you’re walking across campus feeling like the main character because you got dressed, made it to class on time, and remembered your water bottle. The next, one slightly disappointing grade has you staring at the ceiling like your entire future has been cancelled.

I’ve been there.

And honestly? I’m still there.

Because becoming a young adult doesn’t magically make you feel like an adult. If anything, it’s more like being handed the keys to a car while someone says, “Good luck!” and drives away.

Older adults somehow want you to have the responsibility of a 35-year-old but the experience of one too. You're “grown” when they need you to handle something, but suddenly you're “just a kid” when you have an opinion.

Make it make sense.

But somewhere between the stress, the deadlines, the existential crises, and wondering if checking your bank account is considered self-care, there is something incredibly beautiful happening.

We’re living.

We’re going out with our friends just because we can. We’re getting food at ridiculous hours. We’re sitting in parking lots talking about everything and absolutely nothing. We’re taking spontaneous little trips, dressing up for no reason, getting iced matcha like it’s a personality trait, laughing until our stomachs hurt, and staying out way later than we probably should when we have an 8:00 AM class the next morning.

And somehow, at 7:47 AM, we're walking into class looking like we just survived a war.

But those are the memories.

The late-night conversations. The random adventures. The friendships that feel like family. The embarrassing decisions that will eventually become hilarious stories. The nights where nobody wants to go home because we're having too much fun.

Maybe college isn't supposed to be the time when we have everything figured out.

Maybe it's the time when we're supposed to not have it figured out.

We're learning how to love people, how to let people go, how to love ourselves, how to fail without completely falling apart, and how to get back up when we do.

So yes, college can be stressful. Yes, adulthood is confusing. Yes, sometimes I would like to return my responsibilities to the nearest customer service desk.

But we're young.

And there's something so special about being young enough to still be figuring yourself out while being old enough to start creating a life that actually feels like yours.

So go out.

Make the memories.

Say yes to the random plans.

Take the pictures.

Stay up too late talking to your friends.

Go to class exhausted the next morning and question every decision that brought you there.

Because one day, we'll look back at this chaotic little chapter and realize that maybe we weren't lost at all.

Maybe we were just becoming.

And honestly?

I think that's a pretty beautiful thing to be.