Florida Southern College

I truly feel blessed to have had the opportunity to attend college out of state, and although I did my fair share of complaining while I was there, I realize now that it all happened for a reason. As cliche as that statement sounds, I really try and believe that God has a purpose for everything. I learned so many life lessons that I will take with me as I start a new chapter in my life at the University of La Verne and I am thankful to have experienced what I did at Florida Southern.

I never realized how much I relied on my family and friends until I was forced to fend for myself. I never realized how far Florida was until I spent an entire day of travel; navigating through airports, switching planes, trying to sleep on the 7 hour flight while creepy old men tried to talk to me, and simply trying to find a friendly face to help me lift my luggage. I had days where I longed to give my mom a hug or to have one of my best friend's there to tell me everything would be okay. I felt completely alone and helpless at times, but because of the love and support of a few close friends, I made it through my first year and actually made some pretty good memories that I will cherish forever.

I spent my entire first semester of college being completely miserable and feeling bad for myself. One of the reasons I decided to attend Florida Southern to begin with was because I got offered a decent scholarship to run cross country and track. I was disheartened when all of my hopes and aspirations for my college running career fell short; I had the worst cross country season since my sophomore year of high school and it crushed my confidence. I was so unhappy with the team, coaching situation, and the way that I performed that I started to hate running. I dreaded going to practice each day, hated traveling to meets with my teammates and just doing all these things that I used to love about running. It almost became a chore for me and I was almost at a breaking point. I am not and never will be a quitter, but on numerous occasions the thought of leaving the team became a favorable choice.

I had made a commitment when I signed the NCAA Division II papers and as much as I wanted to quit, I knew that it really wasn't an option. As much as I couldn't change the situation, I knew that I could focus my priorities on other things that would make me happier and decided to join a sorority. I have always seen myself as a "sorority girl" and I knew when I started college that it was something I was really interested in. I didn't know if I would have time however with practice twice a day, races, and spending time with my new teammates. I knew that I would be transferring at the end of my first year, but I needed to do something for myself for a change. I joined Gamma Phi Beta and it was one of the best decisions I have made. I became so much happier and it started to show in my workouts, races, and my family and friends even noticed. I needed to take my mind off of running and meet new people and the sorority really helped me enjoy my last semester at FSC. As much as my friends didn't understand my desire to join a sorority for a semester, it didn't matter because I was doing it for myself. I love my beautiful sisters and hope they all know how much they mean to me.

As much as I complained bitterly about Florida Southern, it was an eye opening experience for me. I was forced to make decisions on my own and to rely on myself. I will never forget the people I met and the memories I made while in Florida and I want to say thanks to everyone that made it all worth it. I love you guys.

"Life is a series of experiences, each one of which makes us bigger, even though sometimes it is hard to realize this. For the world was built to develop character, and we must learn that the setbacks and grieves which we endure help us in marching onward."

-Henry Ford