Going back to work these last couple of days, I was bombarded with questions and comments regarding college.  “What are your grades looking like?”  “Are the classes hard?”  “How’s the social life?”  One of the guys said, “They say the first semester is the hardest.”  I hesitated, but eventually agreed.  I elaborated on his comment by explaining how the dorm life is really the only snag that will get you, other than that freshman year is just “13th grade,” the next step up.  It is no harder than 12th grade was compared to 11th, or in the same way 11th was to 10th. 

When I used to come home from a long day of high school I would have dinner, do my homework, and at a reasonable time my whole family was asleep, so I would do the same thing.  In college the dorms come to life around ten at night, and studying after this point becomes very difficult.  With all of my friends right outside my window and down the hall, I have a very difficult time going to sleep.  As a result I have a tough time getting anything done including sleep, and getting up to go to class is impossible.

So, at the end of the semester, as I head out to take my last exam.  I am a little upset for having not performed as outstandingly as I would have liked, but am encouraged that next semester I will be mentally prepared for the distractions and obstacles ahead.