By: Emma Liarikos | Staff Writer
TikTok trends are very seasonal; they tend to come and go as they please. Some are funny, others sad. Some are about love and relationships, and others about something you might have a lot of knowledge on. (Are YOU a Nikki fan?) One of the more recent trends is a semester recap. As the first half of the year comes to a close, I’ve seen a ton of videos on TikTok of freshmen posting their photos and videos from this first semester as a look back on everything they’ve done. It’s the perfect trend: it’s cute, funny, sometimes aesthetically pleasing, and I really do enjoy watching them. However, I also think it’s important to take a look on the other side and acknowledge the fact that these videos are most likely not entirely relatable.
I don’t want to invalidate the experience of others; I’m sure there’s a good amount of people who really did have the best time of their lives during these first few months. But, if I’m speaking for myself – and I’m sure many others in the same position – this semester wasn’t necessarily something I would consider “the best time of my life.” Adjusting to college life is hard: that’s the first thing I learned. The first few weeks were ROUGH. I struggled to make friends, navigate through classes, and generally figure out where exactly it was I belonged. It was lonely here, and although Salve is a small campus and sustains a very low population of students, it might as well have been as big as a 20-thousand-plus-student state school, with how isolating it was at the beginning.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Salve, but just because the school is great and the location is beautiful, doesn’t mean everything was smooth sailing. A lot of the first few days (maybe weeks…) were spent obsessing over making friends and meeting as many people as possible. Sometimes I was crying, other times I questioned whether I made the right decision to go to Salve. Overall, I’m not gonna sugar coat it: I hated it here. I wanted to leave. I thought I would never make friends. I was mad at myself for not picking one of the other schools I applied to, because I totally would have had a better time there…right? (Wrong.)
Social media is a highlight reel. Rarely anything you see is always 100% the truth of a situation.
Another thing I learned is that everyone really is in the same boat, no matter how well people hide it. I’m sure behind all of the selfies and funny videos, there were also equal parts of sadness, loneliness, and struggle. As young adults going through the major life change that is the first semester of college, there is bound to be hardship. An important thing to note is that social media is a highlight reel. Rarely anything you see is always 100% the truth of a situation. Don’t get down on yourself because you didn’t have a “TikTok worthy” semester, because a lot of us didn’t. If you didn’t party on the weekends or become part of a huge friend group or struggled with almost everything this semester threw at you, that’s okay! Many, including myself, can relate to that – you’re not the only one.
The first semester comes with so many challenges that a lot of us aren’t as prepared for as we think. This includes, but is definitely not limited to, being on your own for the first time, leaving everything you’re used to behind, becoming an independent individual, trying to figure out who you are and who you want to be, trying to navigate through this weird period of “adult, but not really an adult” and somehow succeed through all of it.
It’s okay if you don’t succeed at first, or even at all. It’s okay if this semester absolutely sucked. It’s okay if you can’t wait to be out of here and go back home. But don’t feel bad for not having the perfect semester. Don’t feel bad if these first few months went nothing how you imagined them to. There’s nothing you’re doing wrong, there’s nothing you could’ve done to make it better, all you can really do is figure it out as you go!
If there’s one more thing I learned as a first semester freshmen, it’s to trust the process. Eventually, I started to let go of all the uncertainty that was holding me back, and I didn’t even realize I was doing it. I met some amazing people this semester, found a few friends that make my life a lot brighter, and realized that every moment is truly what you make of it. While I definitely had some low points, as I’m sure many can relate, the bad started fading and the good started getting better once I trusted that I am where I’m supposed to be and that no one said this was going to be easy; you have to try to embrace the change and face it head on.
Don’t feel bad if these first few months went nothing how you imagined them to. There’s nothing you’re doing wrong, there’s nothing you could’ve done to make it better, all you can really do is figure it out as you go!
Maybe this looks like trying new things, taking up a hobby you’ve always wanted to, getting into a routine, or finally living the life you’ve always wanted. Over this break, think about what you want for the next semester, and come back ready to make it happen!
What I want to end with is congratulations. You made it through the first semester. I know it wasn’t easy, but you’re here, it’s over, and it’s time for another fresh start. I hope that some of what I said helped or made someone feel less alone, and shed a light on what the first semester most likely actually looks like.
Happy Holidays!
