My freshman year was full of ups and downs. I feel like the large amount of downs that occurred were all more than worth it for how much they built me as a person and a student; however, this is the time to talk about all the ups. Freshman year was my first time living on my own in a new city, St. Louis, like many others. There are a lot of negative stereotypes that shape how people perceive St. Louis, but this city welcomed me with open arms… at least after I figured out how the buses worked. I am really glad I chose to see the city for myself because it gave me a lot of confidence, especially when it came to doing things on my own. And campus was no boring place to be; there were always events going on with good free food. Different departments would do trips here and there and invite guests to campus (last semester we had Olandria come speak, but unfortunately, I don’t watch Love Island). I was granted the opportunity to finally be in a diverse space! As much as I enjoyed growing up around other African Americans, it was nice to meet people who share stories from different countries and to walk around campus hearing more than one language being used. My first year taught me that growth comes from experiencing the new and being okay with inconvenience. I mean, you will never know what’s out there if you try to stay on a straight line, hehehehe. Oh! Also, we were the WashU Bears—hint, hint, the title :).
