I have been a blogger for Hopkins for nearly four years now but it's time to say farewell. My first entry from October 2005 was titled, "Never A Dull Moment." It was about my lunch in Levering Hall in between my Sociology and Political Science classes and about how my dorm's RA always had candy in his room for all of us to take. Looking back at those first few entries, I can't believe how different they are from what I normally write now. All of us on the inaugural team of the Student Admissions Advisory Board were just getting used to blogging and I don't think any of us really had any idea what we were doing or what we had gotten ourselves into.
(See below my freshman dorm room--where all of those first blog entries were written)
In my early blogging stages, I mostly wrote these boring monotone posts about what I had done that day or week, what classes I had attended, events I'd been to and so on. It wasn't until about my junior year or so that I realized that the great things at college (and in life, I guess) happen when you're on your way to, preparing for, or distracted from those seemingly notable things like classes and campus events. Of course those are important but,as a freshman, I don't think I would have written about running into three different friends on campus and how that simple fact indicated that I was starting to develop a network and a family at Hopkins when, in fact, that is the most important thing that was happening in my life at the time.
Something I would have appreciated being told before college is that it's not what you do there that's important, rather, it's where those things take you that matters.
The important thing is not that I joined Alpha Phi or worked on the Model UN Conference or lived in D.C. for a semester or practically lived in Admissions. What's important is the people, the projects, and the passions those activities gave me. That is really what my experience at Hopkins boils down to.
(Below, Alpha Phi family; at the Capitol; Model UN staff 2006)
I recently began my move back home to New York City (I'm making one last trip back to Baltimore to finish my move-out) and one thing I have come to discover is that I am a champion pack-rat. In the past three days I have thrown out everything from projects from the 4th grade to notebooks from freshman year of college. One of the more remarkable things I came across as I went through my bedroom at home was my acceptance package from Johns Hopkins complete with a letter dated March 30, 2005 signed by Dean Latting. Included in the folder was an invitation to a reception in New York for accepted students signed by Dean Conley who is, coincidentally, the person who read out my name at Commencement ten days ago.
My move back home is finally complete (I've been writing this entry over the course of a week or so) and I recently said goodbye to my apartment in Baltimore, once and for all. I don't think I ever would have thought I would say this but, I am really really going to miss Baltimore. Its name "Charm City" is so fitting for a city that is big but small at the same time and full of fantastic restaurants, historical sites, and a great ballpark. Whether it is for an Orioles-Yankees game or for a Hopkins reunion, I know my visits back to Baltimore will be numerous and frequent so to the city of Baltimore, I guess this is just see-you-later and not goodbye.
(Below, Camden Yards)
I feel like I should come up with some sage words to encapsulate my time at Hopkins and to impart on those who are about to enter college but, try as I may, I can't seem to do it. You can't really sum up four years of your life with a few sentences. Though, I guess, that's really the point. This isn't just about going to college for your education (even though that is obviously an important part of it). It's not all about, oh, I was a Poli Sci major and these are the classes I took and that sums it all up. The point is that college is your life for four years. You don't remain entirely a part of the world in which you grew up and simply attend school at your college. In many ways, you have to leave that world behind and make a new one. It seems daunting but that is the only way you will really enjoy college. The world you create for yourself in college is really the one you will come to love.
You meet new people, pick new friends, live in a new city or town and really take ownership of your new world. But you don't leave everything behind--I found that throughout college I really strengthened certain friendships from back home. Of course some fell by the wayside but the important ones stayed strong and without those friends I doubt I would have made the decision to move back home after graduation. Even though it's nice to return to my friends here,I can't say how hard it was to leave my Hopkins friends behind. Of course many of my classmates are joining me here in New York but others are staying in Baltimore or going to Boston, D.C., London, Berlin and Japan. I know we're all going to be far away from each other in the future but I'm confident that, just like my high school friendships, the important ones will stay strong.
I entered Hopkins with a lot of questions about my education, what to do with my life, etc. In the end, I left not having answered those but rather with a keener sense of how to ask better questions of myself--how to figure out what path is best for me and how to find the people I want to surround myself with as I embark on the next phase.
(Below, Frances, Ashley, Me, and Elena after Commencement)
What's the next phase? Well, that's the biggest question of all. Today, I started a summer internship and went to a job interview for an actual full-time position (!!). I don't know where I'm going but I know that where ever I end up I will take Hopkins with me and will never, ever be able to say in enough words how much I loved Johns Hopkins as a school and how much I love the people I met there. The one thing that is certain is that I am so thankful to have been given the chance to walk down the brick pathways of the Homewood campus every day and I wish I could be back there for another four years. But all good things must come to an end. Farewell, Hopkins, it's been quite a ride.
Until next time, on the Alumni Blog...