Dear 18 year old Amber,
congratulations you made it to college! This will be your first time on your own with no parental supervision, but do not let that change who you are. You are going to meet a lot of cool people in your first semester at college, but do not be afraid to speak up for yourself on who you do or do not want in your life. It is going to be rough your rejecting your friend when he asks you out; however, you aren’t actually into him, and in the long run that is going to be the thing that ruins your friendship, not turning him down politely.
On a similar note, don’t get too caught up in what you think people’s perception of you might be. I know it’s difficult, but start working on it now, trust me you’ll be better off in the long run. If someone asks you to smoke with them you do not have to do it to have them like you, and if that is the only way they would you don’t want them in your life anyway. I know once you try it you will like it but do not let that get in the way of what you are here for; you are here to get your degree and move on with your life, this is just a stopping point till you go on to do what you love.
Join clubs. It’s that easy. Put yourself out there, be more open, and don’t let your fear of making a fool of yourself get in the way of staying true to who you are. The right people will love you, quirks and all. Do not be afraid to be passionate about what you are doing, get involved with clubs that interest you and don’t worry about not having friends in it yet, but you will make friends, I promise.
LET YOURSELF HAVE FRIENDS!!! I cannot stress this enough. Reach out to people. The phone works both ways so even though you think your friends are losing interest they aren’t. You are the one who is not putting forth the effort. Just because who you thought was your best friend stopped talking to you does not mean it is the end of the world. Blount gave you an incredible living arrangement to meet so many people who are similar to you … use that. Don’t just mope around when one person moves on, it will be okay.
Don’t be so afraid to take time for yourself. You don’t always have to be “on,” and you deserve a break, college is stressful after all. Make sure that you are putting in the time on your own hobbies and you aren’t just following what others want to do because you think they will like you more for it. They will bond with you over it, but it’s not something you care about so don’t lie and force a friendship that would have happened regardless.
Keep yourself as number one and treat you right. Life is going to get rough and you are going to learn a lot but make sure, above all else, you keep yourself happy because you deserve happiness, no matter what you might think.
11/19
I have actually enjoyed the challenge of reading literature to analyze it rather than just for pleasure. I feel as if it has improved how I look at literature in general. I also feel as if it has made me a better writer.
11/26
The blog to me has been a nuisance since day one. I feel there are better ways to take daily grades and I did not quite understand the purpose, other than to have the showcase. But overall it did not seem necessary to use a blog format for daily writing assignments. On the other hand, I do appreciate that it is a more eco-friendly option to daily grades.
Amber's Blog 