Reflection: My First Semester at FSU

I wrote this post earlier of this month. I'm just now publishing this. I hope you enjoy reading my reflection.

July 3, 2018

I'm halfway finished with my first summer at FSU. I'm currently dealing with my summer rut since summer classes have affected my mental health. I'm glad that I've been able to open up about my feelings to receive help. Now that I'm progressing, I can finally share my first-semester experience at FSU. It's been almost two months and it has been full of reflective experiences. Even though I decided to stay in my hometown for another two years, there has been growth since TCC. First, I feel the need to express about being the native at FSU. It's interesting because I have appreciated the town even more, so therefore I created a challenge to fully explore the town before I graduate. Honestly, when I'm on campus, it doesn't even feel like I'm in Tallahassee. FSU is its own little world. I love how it's filled with different types of people! It may be one of the predominately white schools, but you just have to make the first move to find your people. However, it's totally okay to be friends with people who are different from you. I mean how else are you going to grow if you are surrounded by people who think and act just like you. It's not high school anymore and cliques are annoying in college. It was dull to observe and meet people who still care about their reputation/social status so much that they don't open their eyes to things that are different to them. I can't imagine how they are going to deal with post-grad life. I don't ever want to feel stuck like them.

PeaceJam was one of the biggest things that I was so excited for because it's literally my life. It's crazy to believe that it's been six years since the beginning. This organization has helped me to grow, love, and become the woman I am today. However, I can't always rely on it for my pure happiness. I must be patient and to unconditionally love myself to obtain that emotion. I'm still working on it since it is a journey. Wow!! The idea of loving myself is another topic that I can go on and on about my ups and downs of my experiences. PeaceJam FSU may have been rocky since it's technically new to me. I've never been surrounded by so many peers who have so much love for PeaceJam. Being a mentor for the spring conference was a whole new level for me that it deserves its own reflection post. It was amazing and little anxious, but hey what's growth without feeling uncomfortable?! I'm so excited about the upcoming year because I'm going to do something bigger within this organization..taking on the role of the service chair position. It's been two months since I found out about this and it's wild to think about it. I am so proud of myself to come this far with PeaceJam. This is definitely my true passion. It has inspired me to develop the interest to apply social science theories to current public health issues. Sociomedicine is a real concept, you guys.

I made new friends!! These people are probably the coolest people in the world. I don't deserve them at all. They are the rays of sunshine that I never thought I needed to help brighten my perspective on life. Being around them contains nothing but genuine support and full of laughter. I can't wait to get to know them more. It's so hard to elaborate on this because I love them so much. I learned that you're going to be friends with the types of people that you weren't friends with in high school. Be as open as possible. The world is filled with people with endless personalities so why stick to only one certain group who is the same as you? I'm grateful to attend a university that makes an effort to promote diversity and inclusivity, even though they have a long way ahead to end the gap. I also love my current friends. Life can be hectic and busy and we have our own personal things to deal with, so that being said, I don't always see them. Thank goodness for the advancement of communication. We have each other through texts and emails. It's nice to know that when we do meet up, we're going back to where we left off. The only change there is in our friendship is our strong growth and vulnerability. Friendships have changed me for the good. It has helped me to know my worth and the value of people that I need in my life. Always --> High quality over quantity

My relationship with my parents has gotten stronger. There are my biggest supporters and they just care for me no matter what. I am grateful for them. They have taught me so much about being a good person and the appreciation of simplicity. Since I still live with them, I do admit that it can be aggravating sometimes to feel like a child. However, there's no other way I would rather spend the majority of my college experience with because why would I even want to rent an apartment in a town that I don't even like that much. It's nice to know that I am saving so much money, which will be worth it in the long run. I sometimes think that if I were to do something completely different like moving out of town, my relationship with them wouldn't be as close as it is right now. I am one of those people who believe that things happen for a reason. I think I was supposed to be with them a bit longer so I wouldn't have regretted not spending more with them during high school. I am glad everything turned out the way it was meant to be.

As a tally native student, I didn't think that I would have grown this much. I will always grow where ever I am. It's about how you create your experience and learn from it. Your attitude is going to play a huge part in your experience and growth. Always aim high and be yourself. I developed self-growth because I stepped out of my comfort zone. Get comfortable with the uncomfortable. I tried new things and met people who are different from me. Yet, I still have so much to learn. I want to continue to live a life where I am always learning, growing, and helping. That is truly the life worth living for.