Kennedy Davis
Sep 3, 2018 · 4 min read

I went off to college both excited and nervous. Excited for everything to change; to escape my sheltered hometown and become an independent adult. Nervous for everything to change; to escape my sheltered hometown and become an independent adult.

Everything that I was excited for also scared the crap out of me. Honestly, it still scares the crap out of me.

Eight days. I have been at 162 miles from home for eight whole days. Away from my mom. Away from my boyfriend and sisters and pets.

In my first week, I spent more time on homework than I ever had in high school. I went to more parties than ever before. I saw more people walking around campus than the entire amount of people from my hometown.

My entire life is starting to change and I can see myself changing with it. I’m still that socially awkward kid who giggles and smiles when they’re nervous, but I’m getting used to being uncomfortable.

A lot of the situations I find myself in do just that. They make me extremely uncomfortable. In this week alone I’ve been around drinking, vaping, smoking (both the legal and illegal substances), and more. The parties are wild — nothing like I have ever experienced before.

Maybe it’s a good thing to be in these types of situations. Its allowed me to solidify my expectations for myself and for others. I will not drink and I will not smoke, vape, or inhale any unhealthy substances.

I pride myself on my health. I workout five days a week; count my caloric intake and expenditure along with my water consumption. I want to be the healthiest version of myself, and “partying” doesn’t fit in with that.

But still, even though I’m not consuming these substances doesn’t mean that everyone around me is doing the same. They are going to continue living their lives the way they want; whether its healthy or not. And who am I to judge?
I don’t have the right to do so. As long as they’re happy, I am too. And for my roommates, if they’re gonna go live it up, I’m going to be right by their side as the DD, ready to take them back to our dorm at a moment’s notice.

Apart from the parties, I’ve done a lot of work. And I mean a lot.

I have read three chapters of my massive biology textbook, taken one quiz, read two labs, six articles, and three other chapters from my textbooks. I’ve annotated and taken notes; read and reread. Still, each day, I find more work to be done.

It’s only been one week. And still, so much homework. It’ll only get more difficult as the weeks progress and the semesters roll over into one another.

But this isn’t me complaining. I’ve learned more this week than I did in four years of high school. I learned to be confident in myself and my choices, even if it isn’t the popular decision. I quickly learned time management and to cherish my free time that I have to myself. I’ve learned that I love to learn and never want to stop learning.

I’m excited about my future and the next 8 years of education and residential years beyond that. I’m excited to become a surgeon and practice medicine to save lives.

I used to see college as an ending. The end of my dependence on my parents. The end of my easy lifestyle. But truly it’s just the beginning.

The rest of my life starts now. The tone I set my first semester will be the one that sticks with me for the rest of my undergraduate and graduate career. Now is the time that I become the person of my dreams; the person I’ve always wanted to be.

From this point on, I will prioritize my goals so that I can become the best version of myself. I will eat healthily, consistently exercise, study regularly, keep up on assignments, help others, volunteer, get involved in student organizations.

Becoming that person starts here; it starts now. Today is the day I begin transforming into my future self. And I want to help others on their own journeys. I want to be a positive influence on others. So this is where I’m beginning; in a blog.

About Me:

I am a freshman at Wayne State University, studying biological sciences and psychology. My hope is to become a board-certified cardiothoracic surgeon.

My passions include health and fitness, gardening, cooking, reading, and hopefully blogging becomes my new passion.

My goal for my blog is to help others discover their self and work towards become their best self. I plan on blogging about my health and fitness journey, my self-care routine, schoolwork/workload, and more.

If you are interested in any of these topics feel free to follow me and expect at least one blog post per week. In addition, I encourage you to leave comments on this post to help me become a better writer.

Image Citation:

Sovereign Health Adolescent Program. (2018). Self-Discovery Month: Self-awareness helps teens fight addiction and mental problems [Image]. Retrieved from https://www.sovteens.com/mental-health/self-discovery-month-self-awareness-helps-teens-fight-addiction-mental-problems/

Kennedy Davis

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I am an undergraduate student at Wayne State University. One day, I hope to be a surgeon, until then, I will share my journey to get there with others.

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