Goodbye. It’s a simple phrase. One word. Seven letters. Two syllables. Easy, right?
Well, not for me.
Goodbyes for me are anything but simple. When I went off to college, nearly four years ago, I remember crying with my mother in our laundry room at home, while we finished folding and packing my clothes. Back then, two hours away felt like two hundred. I’ve gotten better at recognizing the distance, but I still have a hard time leaving every time I come home to visit.
However, over the years, I’ve gotten more excited about what I’m heading back to, every time I leave home to return to school. College has become a place full of life, friends, clubs, interesting classes, internships, jobs and opportunities that help me grow into a unique individual. Thinking about it now, and being the sentimental person I am, I’m going to miss those things more than I could have ever thought possible. The list of things I’ve said goodbye to is growing, and it isn’t getting any easier with time.
Yet, it’s something I have to do. I have to say goodbye to those friends, clubs, academic experiences, jobs, etc. The last four academic years at UNC-Chapel Hill have helped mold me into the individual I am today. The person I was back when I cried with my mom on our laundry room floor feels like a distant memory. I’ve grown since then. I’ve grown confident and capable, and I’ve come out of a shell I didn’t fully realize I had. I’m grateful beyond words for the academic, social and professional experiences I’ve had, thanks to Carolina, and that’s what makes saying goodbye so hard.
I’m also grateful for Her Campus. I’m grateful for this outlet that has allowed me to write and share my thoughts, ideas and opinions for so long. Her Campus has allowed me to grow as a writer and as an individual in more ways than one. I’m grateful for the people, for the gatherings, for the website, for the articles and for everything in between. I say goodbye with a heart full of gratitude, and more than I can fully detail.
However, in saying goodbye, I’m also saying hello to a new set of experiences. Living on my own, working a full-time job, preparing myself for higher education—the list goes on. I might be saying goodbye to college and everything that comes with it, and I might be saying goodbye to Her Campus, but I am saying hello to new experiences. I am saying hello to another phase in my life, and I only have these past experiences to thank for getting me here.
Goodbyes aren’t easy, that’s for sure, but I’ll tell you what is. Hellos are easy. They’re exciting and fascinating and full of wonderment for a future yet to be had. I don’t just want to say goodbye. I want to say thank you—and most importantly, I want to say hello to what is yet to come.