Edited by: Aahana Banerjee
Dear me from two months ago,
I’m older than you, and therefore wiser than you, and we shall not be arguing this point. So listen closely while I dole out some advice.
You’re finally coming to campus. The Ashoka Campus. By now, you have opened your suitcases, and started throwing stuff in. Your room is probably cluttered with things that have to go, things that you’re considering, and things you’re just so tempted to take. You are probably mentally sorting through various college packing lists as we speak. There are five different sticky notes of critical not-to-be forgotten things on your wall. But despite all of this, you will forget something oh-so-important, and I’m here to remind you of it.
Pack the personal stuff.
Don’t roll your eyes at me, I know all the arguments inside your head. You’re about to say that you have already packed too many things, that you really should take only the essentials, that you don’t really “need” those things. You are going to try and convince yourself that you’ll be back home in a few weeks, that you don’t actually want to decorate your room, that you are far more practical than that.
You are not.
When you go to college, you are not staying there for a weekend. It is not a vacation. You are living there, and that makes a huge difference. You will need your personal stuff. You think now of moving from class to class, of working hard on assignments and projects, late into the night with complete and utter focus. You are not thinking now about how you sometimes like to pick up your ongoing project and do a bit more sewing. You are not thinking now of the times when you just want to pick up that one notebook and jot down your random thoughts and dreams. But you will be thinking about these when you reach for those things in your college dormitory room, and they aren’t there. Then, you will feel it.
Who are you going to be when you go to college? What is your personality going to be like? How are you going to change? (Of course I know, but I’m not going to tell you. Spoilers!) The tiny things you have, the things imbued with personality over months and years and care and appreciation, those things are going to help you find out how you change. Those small scrap pieces of paper that look insignificant, but contain thoughts that you want to remember- those contain your memories, your personality. Not a pair of pants (Unless they are the palazzo cat pants, of course. Definitely bring the palazzo cat pants).
To speak of only the practicalities as the ‘essentials’ is a huge disservice. Just because you may be able to survive without your favorite pair of earrings or your most treasured poster does not mean that you have to live without it.
But I know you will not take this advice so easily. You are a ‘practical’ person, after all. But let me at least tell you these things, so that when the time comes, and you reach for them and your hand closes on thin air, I can at least say “I told you so.”
Bring your little stuffed bear. In times of stress and near panic, it will be invaluable, and irreplaceable. Bring your favorite books. There is more to the literary world than your assigned reading. Even just seeing them on your bookshelf, waiting for you with quiet, comforting calm, will be enough. Bring your special notebook, the one with stars on its cover of the night sky. The thoughts in your mind will reach for it, and it will be far easier for them to flow when it is open on your desk rather than two thousand kilometers away. Bring your favorite mug, and have faith that it will survive the journey. Bring your old birthday cards because you know they will make you smile.
These things, these precious things, they may not be physical essentials, but they are emotional ones. I know this, because when you reach for them, you don’t ‘want’ them, you ‘need’ them.
I know you will carefully consider each item before packing it. But just remember that thinking twice about something does not mean eliminating it. Remember that moving on in life does not mean leaving things behind.
It’s going to be day after day of new classes, new places, new routines and new faces. In all of that, is it really so bad to have a few old comforts, a few old memories, and a little piece of home with you?
Basically, don’t be like me, and actually take the stuff you love.
Sincerely,
You.