Transitions: The Struggles and Joys of Growing Up
Life on the Hill: Bison Blog
“Adult.” I never realized how terribly frightening that word is until this past month. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been told “you’re an adult now” for years (Although my mother may question whether or not I act like one). However, it hasn’t been until recently that I began to understand that I don’t understand what to do about “adult” life. This epiphany was really brought around by a couple of transitions that have recently occurred in my life.
First of all, I’ve moved off-campus to a house! Now I have my own personal parking spot, laundry room, and I can freely have my own dance parties without downstairs neighbors complaining. It’s also right across the street from campus! Unfortunately, these fantastic benefits come at a price. No, literally… a price. Doing so means paying out of pocket for housing costs rather than putting it on a loan or using scholarship money. Also, it’s not just rent payment that hurts; there are also utilities. Water, electrical, gas, and wifi (an obvious necessity) all add up, especially when there are deposits for each one. Call me naive, but I had no clue there were deposits up front for those. Oh yeah, here’s a picture of our new humble abode…
To keep this snowball of expenses going, there’s also food in the picture. I have no meal plan now and must figure out every meal for myself. I’m excited about this because I love cooking! However, I have to give myself a budget because of my expenses. I think I’ve figured this out though … mac & cheese. I mean, mac & cheese is cheap, easy to make, stupidly delicious, and incredibly nutritious (okay, I need you to use your imagination with me on that one). For real though, what more do you need?
Moving off-campus also brought around another different situation: roommates. I’m not complaining about this at all! (Tucker, Brandon, if you guys are reading this, know that I love you both dearly). What I’m trying to say is that this is just another transition that changes things up. One of my roommates from last semester and I have moved into the house with one of our good friends. So it’s awesome! The only downside is having to leave our other two roommates behind in the apartment. While we’ll still get to hang out, we’ll miss the experience of living every day with the other guys.
Growing up also means dealing with car issues. On my way back home after finals last semester, my car decided it wanted to give up on me. Because of this, much of my break was spent searching for a car. I finally found one, got a good deal, and I love it, but car payments have been added to my expenses now. Also, earlier this week, that car decided to have issues. That’s right, more expenses for a new part. I’m beginning to consider getting a bike, I think cars hate me. But hey, look on the bright side, I’m getting to learn how to work on cars!
Obviously with all these expenses I need lots of work. Well, this is where it gets less depressing. I now have a second job as a lifeguard at the RAWC, the wellness center on campus. This is a huge blessing and came just in time for me, plus I’m getting to be at school over j-term just to work there! I love lifeguarding and all the people I’m getting to know through it! However, sometimes my roommates think I take it a little too far when it comes to protecting those who are around water…
Finally, the last transition I’ll mention is one that hasn’t actually happened yet. Graduation is still three semesters away, but I’m having to realize that’s not all that much time. It’s exciting to think about life after graduation, but also intimidating because of the unknown parts of it. I’ve been getting calls from seminaries and have begun narrowing down what life will be like after my OBU days. I know God’s got awesome things in store even if I don’t know exactly what those things are yet. So while I’m preparing for the future, I know I can still be present and enjoy the rest of my undergrad time!
What am I getting at by all of this? College is a time of a lot of transitions. It can be frightening and stressful at times, but there is also excitement and joy in growing up and moving further on in life. Trust me, I realize that I don’t even know the half about being an adult, but I’m going to take what’s in front of me now and enjoy these learning experiences. I’m so grateful for my college experiences and how they’ve stretched and grown me. With each challenge, I can look back and realize I actually enjoyed working through it and have gained valuable skills about life. As you go through life, expect change, but embrace it. Learning to grow through transitions and responsibilities will grow you into the awesome person you’ll obviously turn out to be. So get excited! Growing up is crazy, but in a good way. Love it, embrace it, own it.
Life on the Hill: Bison Blog
