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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at SBU chapter.

There is a term that my generation likes to use and that is called “full-circle moment.” When you say you’ve endured a full-circle moment, it means that you did a certain activity that you have done once before but at a younger age. I didn’t realize I could have these moments until I turned 18. This is when my first one started.  

Back in the 2nd Grade, I was on a field trip with my classmates and my mom was a chaperone. Mind you, I love my mom. But at the time, I loved her tattoos more. The dark colors to their designs, I was captivated by the ink she had imprinted on her body. I loved them so much that I had to show them off to everyone. From that day on, I told my mom that I wanted one just like her. 16 years later, I fulfilled my 2nd grade wish.  

If you were to see me in person, you would see a dark-shaded crescent moon with two small stars next to it. On the top of those pictures, there is a word that says “Daughter” while on the bottom of my arm it says, “To the moon and back.” Me and my mother have the same tattoo.  

As I was getting it, I was gripping my mom’s hand for dear life. I looked to the needle tracing my skin with ink and when I looked back at my mom, all I saw was me from 2nd grade, smiling down at me as her curly brown hair hung in front of her hazel eyes. At that moment, I knew I had no regrets about getting this tattoo that will be on my body for the rest of my life.  

Another full-circle moment that occurred in my life happened more recently. Over the summer, I was struggling with finding a job. Eventually I found one that I enjoyed working in customer service at the BBQ Barn at Niagara Amusement Park. Now, working at the barn itself did not bring out this flashback from my childhood, but what did was where the barn was located.  

Growing up, I loved going to the amusement park. The rides, the food, the games, everything made my eyes light up. But what I had the most fun watching was the cowboy shootouts located in Western Town. The acting, the costumes, the actors themselves; I was mesmerized by them. I wanted to be like them.  

Although I never became a cowboy, working near them was the next best thing. So, when I worked in Western Town at the park over the summer, I watched every single cowboy show they had. There were moments that I was silently fangirling (like when Doc Holliday started talking to me), but I aways made sure to never show it because that person so happy to talk to him was the little girl who enjoyed being in the crowd watching the bad guys get caught by the heroes.  

The way I think about full circle moments is that they are more than just times where you relive your childhood. They are a way of remembering the good times growing up and knowing you can still have those moments for yourself. You just have to find the best ways to bring them to light again.  

Olivia Francis is a second-year member of the Her Campus at SBU chapter. She oversees the site’s culture, entertainment, and wellness verticals on the site, including mental health, relationships, TV shows, and movie coverage. Olivia is currently a second-year student majoring in Communications, Social Justice & Advocacy at St. Bonaventure University. Beyond Her Campus, Olivia has been published in many anthropologies over the years through an organization called Young Writers. She is also one of the leading coordinators for SBU's Break The Bubble. In her free time, Olivia enjoys writing poetry and short stories, along with taking walks while listening to her favorite music genres on Spotify such as Pop or R&B. One of her goals is to travel the world someday and explore new foods and customs. An interesting fact about Olivia is she is not only the first college gen student but, she is the first female in her family to go for a higher education.