Love and Honor

Tomorrow, I graduate.

I know a lot of seniors step on the seal after
they finish their last final/assignment,
but I still don't feel like I can. 

Thank you to everyone who has supported me and helped me throughout the past four years. I appreciate everything you have done for me, and it's because of your help that I have been able to accomplish all that I have.

I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to come to college, and it's hard to believe that it's already over; yet, I'm surprisingly looking forward to donning my cap and gown tomorrow. I'm ready. 

Miami has continuously surprised me with all the doors that it has opened for me, and that is something that I will never take for granted. Miami has afforded me with so many incredible experiences, and I'm so lucky to have come here. 

While the past four may not have always been easy, the struggles were always worth it.

I may be ready, but I still cannot believe that the day I've been waiting for is here. 

Tomorrow, I graduate. 

I appreciate all of the opportunities that Miami has provided me with, but now it's time to move on to the next adventure -- whatever that might be...

Keep on Going

On the left is a photo of me on my first day of class at Miami,
and on the right is a photo of me after I got out of my
last class at Miami today.

In August 2012, I began my college career at Miami as an Early Childhood Education major. The first class I had on campus was ENG 111 (Composition and Rhetoric), and we had to go around the room and talk about what we had eaten for breakfast. I ate a banana that day.

Today, I finished my last undergraduate class at Miami as an Integrated English and Language Arts Education major with minors in Writing & Rhetoric, Linguistics, and English Literature. My last class was ENG 293 (Contemporary American Fiction), and I’m glad to say that I didn’t have to talk about what I had for breakfast today (if you must know, I had cookies), but instead, we discussed graphic novels.

I find it fitting that English classes serve as the bookends of my career here at Miami.

Between my first class in 2012 and my last class in 2016, a lot has changed. I’ve grown in more ways than I would have imagined, and I’ve truly learned so much – both inside the classroom and out.

The past four years have not always been easy, and sometimes, giving up seemed like the right choice, but I am so glad that I stuck with it.  I won’t lie. College isn’t always easy, but it’s worth sticking to the course. Keep your goals in mind, and keep chasing them. Every obstacle presents an opportunity for learning, and you’ll come out stronger and tougher than before.

As my four years draw to a close, I look back at each of the experiences that pushed me to my breaking point, and I have to say that in hindsight, I am grateful for each experience because they shaped me into who I am. If I hadn’t encountered so many challenging experiences, I wouldn’t be who I am today.

In many ways, the past four years have pushed me out of my comfort zone, but without those opportunities to learn and grow, I wouldn’t be where I am today.

I know, I know. This post is full of clichés, but they honestly ring true. I know that I didn’t believe everyone when they said college would fly by, but it’s true.

Keep your goals in sight, and keep on going, because in the end, it will be worth it.

Beyoncé, the Western, and Advertising

The end of my final semester of college is coming faster than I want it to, and once more, I find myself swimming in papers and presentations. A typical end of the semester scenario.

Photo I took in King Library.

But this semester, I’m not overly stressed about the pile of work surrounding me. While I’ve been spending the majority of my free time hiding in the stacks of King Library, searching for books to help me with these papers and projects, I’m not worried about finishing everything.

It will all get done, even if I take a break to go hang out with my friends (this is a mindset that is strangely foreign to me).

Because as much as I love that I’m writing a research paper about societal reactions Beyoncé’s song “Formation” and another paper about gender in advertising, I can’t fully seclude myself in cubicles in King during my last two weeks of college.

I have a bucket list to complete, and while writing an academic paper about Beyoncé may or may not be on that bucket list, there are other things I want to complete, too. I still would like going to a baseball game and visit my favorite spots on campus one last time.

And as exhilarating as I find writing papers about gender in the Western genre to be, I’ve finally come to the realization that this thing which people call “senioritis” is beginning to creep into my mindset. It’s not that I’m slacking off – I’m still doing all my work and I’m still applying for jobs like crazy – I’ve just come to the realization that I need to enjoy what little time I have left.

While I have very little time left, the key is that I have time, and it will all get done.