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It's Your Freshman Year Of College~
Kelly Gunther • August 18, 2020
Welcome To You're New Future!
It's your Freshman year of college! I am writing this, as a girl who’s never gone to college, so please bear with me. I am going to try to make this as best of a blog that I can! I am also writing this as for you to be super excited & ready for the next steps in life.
You probably have all of these thoughts going into your mind. I’m the new person on campus. What does my roommate like? Will I get along with my roommate? Am I going to struggle in my classes with all of the homework? Will I even maybe gain the “freshman 15?” I mean I am sure you have a lot of questions & that the list can keep going on. As that is completely normal to have all of those questions & thoughts. That knowing it’s just in the beginning and then everything else will start to fall into place.
This is where you start to really begin the next 4 years of your life. You start to create your own personality even more so. Becoming yourself & who you are, as you grow more into the person you are. You make friends that you will probably have for a long time after school. Where you will meet some of your true friends, to do life with. Might even meet the love of your life and marry him maybe someday! You have all of the future at your fingertips. Yet as you are fresh out of the house and this is all completely new to you. You get to learn all of the ropes yourself. Your parents, siblings drop you off and say “Good Luck, see you soon!” Ah, now what. I’m in this new big world alone. Luckily for you, you aren’t the only freshmen & there & will be a lot of you, getting to know one another. This is where you can start to find clubs, study groups & whatever kind that might interest you, that you can join.
Don’t let one thing define you. If you go into college thinking you are going to do one thing for the rest of your life, but then you decide it's not for you, you have the power still to be able to change your mind and find something. Don’t just ever settle on one thing. You can do and be anything you want to be.
If you are anything like me, and school let alone classes might be a little harder for you. Do not be afraid to get some extra help. I’ll be the first to tell you, we all aren’t perfect, nor are we even made up to be “perfect”. Set your mind & go after it, even if it takes you a little extra time and work to be able to get it done. You will & can always say you’ve given it your best, no matter what! Just please never be ashamed to ask for help, even if it's your roommate or a good friend on campus that you connect with. Always ask, if you need it!
If you are also playing sports or have gotten a scholarship to play a sport at school, this is where you really have to put your head down and work hard. Not only are you having to do your schoolwork with papers that need to be turned in at a certain time, but yet always making sure you are showing up to practice and making sure you aren’t just doing the “showing up” but being ready to go. You’ll have a lot on your plate. As you are also ready for this. Senior year teaches you a lot. Being ready for that first year of college, so it isn’t a complete total of a shock.
Even though it still might be a little bit.
Sports you get to do for the love of it and something you are so passionate about. You now get to choose what parties you want to attend and not attend because of practice the next morning. I always say “choose wise” There is always a place and a time for that later. Never lose sight of your dreams in the middle of the peer pressure while doing what you love. I say that & give the advice, as now you will be tempted to want to do what your friends are doing. This is where you get to set yourself apart from the group & really focus on what you are going after. If you play a sport your freshman year and it just didn’t work out for you, then do not feel pressured to continue to play. You learn a lot about yourself year 1 whether you realize it or not. College is your journey and what is going to set you up for your further. Also a lot of times there is where scouts are looking at you to then play in the big leagues. If that is your dream to play for the NFL, NBA, Major League teams, you really have to find your determination in yourself and know that nothing is going to ever stop you! You will have had the fight & drive in you already, since doing it as a kid & that you’ve now found your passion. This is just the beginning of it, as now you can push yourself even further and keep your eyes on what you want to achieve. Have fun with it, as this is the best year of playing sports where you’ve dreamt of going to college. This is where you get to go out and show what you are made of, what you work for, what you give up on those nights you want to go out. This is where you fight in the gym & push yourself further than you’ve ever pushed yourself. This is when you “thought” about giving up & pushing yourself to throw up. This is where you always go the extra mile, push yourself as you have never before. The drive can only come within YOU. This is where you look into the mirror and fight for what you want in life. This is where you might not get along with every single coach, but yet you find it away. This is where you need to talk with a sports psychiatrist. You find one to help you and work with you. Not only did you just do that in high school & growing up, but now you are taking yourself to a completely different level. This is where you really fight to win for yourself & make yourself proud. You are now growing into the athlete that you’ve always wanted to become. This starts now.
This is when you want something so bad you don’t ever stop dreaming of it. Yet opening your eyes & working towards it every single day. This is when you have a bad day at training you leave it on that day. The next day is a whole new brand day to start over again and keep working hard. This is where you find where you believe in yourself, you are your biggest cheerleader. Don’t forget that on those days, when you feel alone. Always find the inner voice to keep pushing yourself to the next level.
College is one of those experiences where you're going to get out of it, what you put into it. You can become anyone you absolutely want to be. The best part, it’s not high school so you don’t have to worry about being a part of the “popular group” or the “sports group.” You can have a number of friends and not everyone needs to be friends with each other. You need to be able to separate yourself from your dorm friends to your teammates, to the people you meet in your classes. Each group is going to teach you something about yourself and is going to open your eyes to views and perspectives you may have been closed-minded to.
Since I was the girl who didn’t get to go to college. I reached out to one of my good friends, Courtney & asked for a little bit of her help and wanted to know about her freshman year experience. To be able to share with you from someone who did go & choose a University. As I thought about this today what I was going to add in here & tie it all together. This thought came to my mind. Courtney & I just became friends not really too long ago. We were just the ones where the friendship just clicked. I share that also because that is probably a lot of how your “new friends” are going to be, as you are walking into your first few months of college. You’ll make friends, and then you'll make friends, where you just click and it's easy. Hold onto those friendships because they are the special ones & the ones that will always be there for you, no matter what! Good friends are hard to come by. Cherish those ones that mean a lot to you.
So let’s hear about how Courtney’s freshman year of college & how it was for her!
My freshman year was one for the books! I had a difficult time choosing my university, and I refused to go into school without a major declared. My Dad is a college professor and after a school visit, I decided I wanted to change my major. My Dad suggested I go to school with him, sit in a sports class and see what I thought. I did the above and decided okay, I’m going to major in Sports Business and I am going to go to a school where my Dad taught. I always throw in there, it was not by choice that I had to attend that University, and trust me, my Mom was not the happiest!
I really can’t picture myself at any other University. Freshman year started and it was great. I had a good roommate, we also lived in a coed dorm which was great because we met more people. We really enjoyed the start of freshman year and I made sure I was putting myself out there and making the most of it! Now, I know what you’re probably thinking, “you went to school where your Dad taught?” Yes, and I would 100% choose it again. Did I face the, you’re Docs daughter question a lot, absolutely, but I got to see my Dad whenever I wanted, I got dinner from home whenever I wanted and who’s complaining about a home-cooked meal!
Aside from that, I really started to learn who I was freshman year. I got myself into a routine, I made sure I surrounded myself around good people and worked hard in my classes. Everyone has different experiences with year 1. Some are good, some are bad. I think the most important message to those who are nervous about starting college like I was, is whether you’re in a new state, you’re farther from home or not good with making friends is if you don’t try to adapt to this new setting you are letting yourself down. Your best friend is there, I promise you. Nobody said college was going to be easy, but college is wonderful and if you’re feeling uneasy, trust me, there are plenty of others who are feeling uneasy too. Being involved in groups and going to events with your school hosts is important because that is where you find your people. And that was what I learned. I found my people by being involved and I’m so glad I put myself out there and did everything I could.
Thank you Courtney for sharing your experience not only with me but now whoever will read this. Hoping they can gain a little be of ease going into their freshman year!
You are totally walking into your brand new chapter of your future. There will be times where it is hard & challenging & you might be really hard on yourself as well being down on some days. Keep pushing. As an athlete, I will tell you, “Push through your school work-homework, just as you would a practice of a sport that you do.” Always keep on pushing no matter what. As it's on those hard days & times when you grow throughout yourself & become stronger. Don’t ever quit on yourself. Always prove to yourself, that you can do anything, you put your mind to.
Enjoy the new ride of this chapter of life. This is just your beginning to whatever you want to be, as well as becoming whoever you want to be. Always remember the sky's the limit & you can reach for anything! Keep your head up, as well as having fun. Believe in you! If you ever need a little reminder of letting yourself know, you're not alone. Come back and read this blog. We are always here for you!
Good Luck~
Kelly Gunther Blog
Let that sink in for a bit as you read it. You might be wondering what that even means. Spiritual friendship isn’t something you just come across or even recognize right off the bat (at least for me, it wasn’t). It’s a friend, or group of friends, who lead and point you to God. I never knew what it truly was until I joined my church and was introduced to small groups. My small group was a group of women who met every Thursday. We’d do a Bible study together then discuss what we’d learned on the topic of what we were following and diving into. I really started to feel not only what “spiritual friendship” was but more of even the meaning of “true friends.” Before I made these spiritual friendships, I’d never been around a group of women that would pray together and talk vulnerably to help one another with the best advice they could. As it was then handed to God we knew & trusted that He would always point us in the direction of where it was going to lead us. Friendships are very important and always have an important meaning behind them, as every friend you have is - different from one another. That is what is so special about friendships and having so many different ones. Each one is unique and special to you. I just want you to know, I’m not here to tell you how to be a good friend or even be a Spiritual Friend, just want to give my meaning of friendships of my own. As they are very important to me, as it's where good friends become your family as well as lifting one another up. Friends are how you get to pick who you want to be in your circle to do life with. They understand everything that you are going through and will always be there for you, no matter what. The little catch is… You yourself have to be a good friend also. This starts just within you! If you aren’t a good friend to yourself, you can’t be a good friend to anyone else. you have to love yourself to be able to give yourself to others. What you put into you is just as important as what you give out to your friendships. If you aren’t happy with yourself, you won’t be happy with others. To know who you truly are, you have to fully dig within yourself. There are a few pieces. Confidence within you, believe in yourself, love yourself for who you are, and most importantly, stand up for who you are! If you are confident with who you are, you’ll be able to attract confidence in friendships. You want the ones who lift one another up. I love seeing my friends grow in who they are and chase the dream they want. You want to see them succeed, be happy for them, and cheer them along the way. Cause hey! Not everyone is always “perfect” or on their best game for that day. When you need a little belief or whatever it may be, your friends are able to help lift you up and remind you who you are! It's a hard world out there and even a cruel one. Why be so cruel to one another, when you can lift and help one another out? As you succeed, so do your friends. It’s a huge momentum circle where one feeds off another, to then lead into another. The more momentum you have, the more you grow stronger as a bond and always help each other out. Friendships are always for seasons of life. they are put into certain parts of your life, for when you might need that exact friend to be able to help you. Each one has its own story to be able to grow with you. “Friendship is the greatest of worldly goods. Certainly, to me it is the chief happiness of life. If I had to give a piece of advice to a young man about a place to live, I think I should say, ‘Sacrifice almost everything to live where you can be near your friends.’” C.S. Lewis Love that quote! I hope you can understand how important friendships are, what they stand for, and who they are. Without friendships, you won’t have much. As friendships really are the greatest of worldly goods! Says C.S. Lewis. Also along with C.S. Lewis, I couldn’t agree more, “to me it is the chief of happiness of life’ As it is! Love your friends, as you love yourself At the same time, the more you love your friends, the more you love yourself and are able to love them even more! Be who you are and give what you have! Love one another as God has loved you! Be the friend who you want to have.New Paragraph
Why hello again! I feel it's been a little bit since I’ve posted a blog or even gotten to write. So here we are. I write or post my blogs on what I feel inspires me that week or if something fun & exciting happens. So they might be all over the place & I apologize for that, but that is also just who I am. All over the place! With that being said, let's just dive into it. Have you ever felt you couldn’t make the choice to just say “yes” and go after what you want? There might be a few of us. It’s never easy, just to make the choice to say “yes” it comes with a lot of feelings behind it. Fear, anxiety, not thinking positive, just being scared, scared of the outcome, I mean there’s a lot that could be stopping you. The catch is.. WHAT IF YOU CHOSE TO SAY “YES” I’m not saying there isn’t going to be a lot of work behind it and scary, don’t get me wrong. It is scary, but there’s always the other hand. The hand of choice that you, yourself get to pick. You get to say “yes” even if it's scary in the middle of the storm. If you are going to be brave enough(which I know you are) to say “yes to the choice” you must also have the courage to stick to your vision because it will be tested. That I can promise you myself. Now that I’ve entered the new chapter of a season of life it hasn’t been easy. I won't lie to you. It hasn’t been butterflies & rainbows. Probably because if it was, it wouldn’t be worth it. With every challenge comes a storm. You just have to know you will be tested. That you are stronger than what you think, because of you. Yourself knows the outcome you want. You don’t stop until you get there. The work has been & be will cut out for you, but how are you going to keep working towards what you want? I’m here to say that because you have a choice to say “yes” you have the steps to move you forward, you have a choice to use what you’ve been gifted. It’s a gift you’ve been given. Especially when it's something you want to go after. When others might be questioning you, or you yourself even might be. Know you are strong enough within yourself because you said “yes!” Nobody else did or did it for you, but YOU! You said it for yourself to set your goals & dreams out to whatever they are. Don’t care what others think. This is what you get to pick for yourself. When you might be having those hard days, or questioning yourself because you will have those. It's something that just comes along with it. Know that it is completely normal to have those bad days because that is what makes your YES even stronger. You’ve committed to yourself. You owe yourself everything! Always be proud of what you are going after! I’m proud of you for saying “YES” even when it's so scary & you aren’t sure of the outcome. Write YES on a mirror you see every day or even something you see that can remind you, of what you are going after. Some of the littlest words are yet so strongly. I'm so excited for you to move forward & keep one foot in front of the other. YES! YES! YES! Go say “YES!”