It’s been a hot minute since I began my journey at this university and let me tell you that nothing could have gotten me ready in the slightest for all the lessons and difficultes I’ve had to endure during these four years. Here are some of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned so far:
1. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.
It has truly been the worst/best year of my life. Everyone can agree that it has been a truly challenging year after the hurricane, with the constant power outages and everything else. However, it has also been a year full of blessings as I have been able to find people that, no matter what crappy times I am go through, are always there for me. There is always something good out of every situation.
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2. Let go of people who don’t value you and take you for granted.
This one goes hand-in-hand with the first one. It’s been a challenging year, and that is exactly when you know who your true friends are. No matter what you are going through in your life, there is no reason you should hold on to someone that has not only grown apart from you, but also doesn’t seem to care if you are part of their life or not. One has to know that there are better people out there who will love you for who you are and you have to get rid of people who no longer bring any good into your life. It’s not about being mean, but not everyone deserves your time and friendship.
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3. A class is just a class.
Yes, you should aspire to do well in your classes and have a good GPA. However, this is not all that matters. Just because you did horrible on your Chem1 course does not mean you’ll be a failure. There are classes I completely hate about my major and though knowing a little bit about everything is great. Just because I didn’t get the ideal grade on that particular course doesn’t mean I won’t get a job. It’s all about the experiences and the overall knowledge that will help you succeed in life. Straight A’s don’t necessarily mean success.
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4. Failure does not equal the end.
I have truly struggled this year to be able to find an internship for the summer. I have gone to my counselor several times, enlisted a few friends to help me, and I have failed to do so. It has been really difficult and has really gotten to me up to the point that I didn’t even care about my grades anymore. Because it did not make any sense to me at all that I had worked so hard for four years, had this really good GPA, and a pretty great resume, I still had nothing. Meanwhile all of these people that I knew were given certain opportunities on a silver platter. But that doesn’t matter because this is real life and no matter if people do or don’t necessarily deserve what they get it really has nothing to do with me. And though I have yet to succeed, my life is not over and I will still be doing productive and great things during summer. Everyone talks about their success, but not enough people talk about their failures and what it took for them to get where they are. Life isn’t all great and no struggle and we need to accept our failures, learn from them, and keep working toward our goal.
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5. It’s OK to be a Rachel Berry.
Not everyone will have the same sense and level of compromise or good intentions that you do. This was my first year as CC of the HC UPRM chapter and it’s been a challenge, to say the least. But no matter what I have had to endure during this year I have also had the opportunity to grow as a person, find these leadership skills that I never thought I had, but most importantly, I have learned to stand up for myself. I have been such a painfully shy person my whole life however, there is no reason why I or anyone should let people walk all over them. It is not about being rude, but if you have been around Colegio for a while you know this kind of cutthroat culture that exists. And if you take anything away from this is that you really need to look out for your best interest, but that doesn’t mean you’re going to step on someone to achieve anything.