So much for a farewell. I guess I can’t stay away! But this really is my last article; the other one was my last as a high school student. Now I am a college student! Due to the fact that I am now a member of the Wesleyan University Class of 2014, I am ready to spread my wings and make my mark on the world..right?

That zealous, determined attitude has been a part of my personality since childhood, but now my confidence is wavering. College is slightly daunting. I am safe in Ely, I am always in my comfort zone, my element, and around the people I know and love. Connecticut is a new world. I will be 1,151 miles away from the place I know best. I participated in everything I wanted to in Ely, and I was not absolutely terrible at any of them. Although my ability to speak German, after three years of the class, could be considered terrible. But the point is that next year I could be awful at multiple things. What if I am bad at making friends? I haven’t had to make friends since first grade. What if I cannot handle all the reading and writing? What if I submit to peer pressure and end up in a really bad situation? What if I get really sick and don’t know what to do without my mommy and daddy to make chicken noodle soup? I have been preparing for college since ninth grade and always thought the transition would be exciting and somewhat simple. At this moment, it seems quite difficult and feel I am not sufficiently prepared for college and life in the big bad world. Maybe there should be a required class in high school teaching soon-to-be adults how to live on our own, how to pay a mortgage, how to buy and sell stock, how to acquire loans for tens of thousands of dollars to pay for college. A class that makes us read Jane Austen, learn about Asia’s history along with Europe’s, study vocabulary to ace the SAT, sear a steak to perfection, balance a check book, force us to memorize our social security numbers, how to build a fence, the number of people who do not have access to clean water in the world, the difference between anthropology, archeology, and paleontology, and how to stop worrying about what we do not know and just enjoy knowing how much learning we can do in our lives.

There is so much I do not know, but I can always figure it out. I can ask for help and learn from my mistakes. If I am too prideful to ask for help, I could end up poorly achieving or dropping out along with almost fifty percent of other students that start college, according to the New York Times. I may not be able to understand genetics at first, but I will be sure to get help. If I don’t, I know I will fail the class.

The challenge of completing college will be a journey of a lifetime; a journey full of late nights in the library, meltdowns because I have a ten-page paper due the next day, and not-so-good exams. But I am sure those tense moments will be paralleled with persistence, a giant bowl of ice cream for the accomplishment of a mammoth English paper, and star worthy exams.

My anxiety for leaving for college masks the anticipation I feel deep down. Once I assure myself I can handle the times of uncertainty and tension, I just feel excited for the adventure. In the month and a half I have left in my secure Ely bubble, I will try my best to learn how to sear a steak to perfection, read Pride and Prejudice, and just enjoy my ignorance. I have the rest of my life to learn. Everyday until I die, I have the chance to learn something new, to enjoy the presence of family, friends, and canine companions. To live for the excitement rather than anxiety.