By: Lora Bishop
I can remember sitting in my childhood bedroom the night before my big move to Auburn University, and anxiously running a long list of scenarios through my head of how my life would turn out once I was out on my own. I stayed awake till nearly 4 a.m. looking through old yearbooks, putting away high school uniforms and neatly arranging my most prized possessions, as if to freeze that room in that time so that I would always have something familiar to come back to.
I still can feel the mixture of nerves and excitement settling in the pit of my stomach when I put the last finishing touches on my new home away from home, and the anticipation I felt for an endless amount of possibilities that lay ahead of me.
Looking back, as I sit writing this blog on a couch carefully decorated in my fourth apartment since leaving home, I realize that I am sitting in a season of life that I once prayed and hoped for. Since that night before I left to now, I have experienced heartbreak, disappointment, joy and a host of other emotions that I can only describe as the pathway to the woman I am now.
If I had the opportunity to sit down with my former self, I wouldn’t spare her any of the hard times. I would however tell her not to let the bad times overshadow the good. I am a firm believer in the notion that everything happens for a reason- that what will be, will be. I would tell my younger self to roll with the punches and to not anticipate the future, but to enjoy the present.
One memory in particular that I look back on was the summer I spent in Seville, Spain, on a study abroad trip with Auburn. I decided to apply for this trip after a representative had come to speak about it in front of my first major-specific communications class. The decision to go came after a particular experience the night before, one that I still remember vividly to this day. This was a pivotal moment in my freshman career as a college student that would define how I would handle all conflict and adversity from that point forward.
If I could tell myself one thing, it would be to enjoy and cherish that experience, to not be nervous and to not be so anxious to get home by the end of it. It may sound cliché to say that my study abroad trip “changed my life”, but it wasn’t so much about the traveling as it was about the confidence I gained in myself and the things I learned I was capable of.
After this trip, I would tell my younger self to cherish the friendships it brought her and to utilize the experience she gained to help her through the rest of her time at Auburn and beyond, and to always trust her gut when she decides whats best for her.
Looking forward to graduation and whatever lies ahead, I hope to write another of these blogs. I hope to be sitting in a new chapter of my life grateful for the experiences that brought me there, and to be able to tell my present self that everything works itself out in the end.