Only the Beginning

Change is scary. I for one hate moving on from good things. However, there is something so special and beautiful about entering a new chapter in life. This might sound aggravating being written by a sophomore if you’re a current senior or upperclassmen, and I get it. I mean everyone before us was absolutely right; time in college really does fly. 

When reflecting on my time here at Fairfield thus far, I find myself feeling a lot of regret and anxiety at the pace at which things are going. I regret getting sick a lot this year and missing out on fun weekends; every weekend missed feels like a loss. I regret not going out much my first semester freshman year, thinking I wasted away so much of the upperclassmen advice saying ‘money comes back’ and ‘go out whenever you can!’ And I can’t help but feel regret for missing out on a whole semester at Fairfield for the beginning of my junior year as I will be abroad in Florence, Italy. I think to myself, ‘did I choose to study abroad the wrong semester? Should I have chosen the second semester instead?’ and ‘Should I have chosen to study abroad at all?’ But then I realized how fun abroad will be and how many countries in and outside of Europe I’ll get to explore. Though my chapter of sophomore year and another semester of going out and making memories with friends is closing, abroad is another very exciting chapter that’s opening up for me. I realized that you can’t dwell on the sadness and what you will be missing out on because life and time forces us to let things go and move onto new beginnings.

My message is to appreciate the now, but also don’t dread the future and hold onto sadness because there are so many things to look forward to. Everyone in your grade is right there with you when a chapter ends. You’re not alone, and you are all experiencing these new moments together. I believe it’s important to be happy with what’s to come and to not harp on FOMO. I feel very grateful to attend Fairfield U and to have the amazing opportunity to study abroad. It’s not a loss, it's a gain! I wish everyone luck on their new beginnings, experiences, and journeys:)

<3, Charlotte Powell