To The Girl Whose College Experience Was Put On Pause,
This leave of absence, and the emotions surrounding it, isn’t an obstruction to your journey. This is a part of your journey. I know that even that statement must suck to hear sometimes, but I promise that this storm will not last forever. You will come out on on top.
College is a great teacher, but life will give you a Ph.D. in endurance, strength and character if you listen to the lessons it is trying to teach you. All you have to do is to take a deep breath and hold on tight. You’re going to make it.
Society does a great job of making us all feel like there is a “right” way to do things. We hear all of these messages about how we should go to a good school, graduate in four years, study abroad, party, have an elaborate social life — but that simply isn’t reality. The reality is that life happens.
I know that there are probably so many emotions surrounding this semester, and that is completely understandable.
But I want you to promise me this: Do not stress about school. Despite how you might feel, you aren’t “behind.” (Behind what, anyway? Behind society’s timeline?)
When you return to school, things will be different in the best way possible. The faces and places that were once merely blurs in your peripheral vision will be clearer and brighter, because you will have so much more perspective and appreciation for them. It won’t just be routine; it will be a second chance. The school that you once didn’t even want to attend will be a symbol of your future, your hope and, most importantly, your comeback.
Despite how you might feel right now, you are not gone. The person you were before all of this happened is still there, I still see her. Your soul is a little injured right now by the adversities you are experiencing, but just like any injury, the pain will heal.
That happy-go-lucky girl you miss? She will be back in full swing. Only when she returns, her cheerfulness will not simply be from innocence and levity, but from a deeper understanding of what matters in life and what she values.
The deeper the valleys, the higher the peaks.
As time passes, please know that what you are dealing with is never going to be “old news.” It always matters, and I’ll always care. I want you to know that if this issue lasts for the rest of your life, I will never get tired of talking you through it. The legitimacy of your pain doesn’t have an expiration date. If you still feel it, I will be here.