Frankly, I’ve been avoiding writing this article for a while now. I graduated on June 14th, and told myself that I would write this article immediately after the ceremony. However, immediately following the ceremony I wasn’t really filled with joy. I was filled with mostly sadness. There were even multiple occasions throughout the day where I would just start crying. As I write this article, I am getting emotional just thinking about that day. The accomplishment of completing college and getting my degree didn’t really mean much to me in comparison to what it meant for me to leave Santa Cruz. I absolutely love our campus. I truly will miss the long, beautiful walks to class, and the many amazing views. I’m going to miss playing pick up basketball with all the regulars at the gym. But most importantly, I’m going to miss the people. I’m going to miss the people that I will likely never see again. And what I’m going to miss the most is living with my housemates. Of course, I will always make time for them and try to see them as much as I possibly can. But living with them, even in our mediocre, messy house are memories that I will always cherish.
As I said earlier, I don’t take much pride in the degree itself, but what I do get a sense of accomplishment in is the amount of growth that I have undergone the past 4 years. I came into Santa Cruz an overweight, naive 18 year old, and left with a wealth of experience, and in the best shape of my life. I lacked a lot of confidence, but over the years, I learned that it’s ok to fail and knowing that gives you all the confidence in the world. I gained a better perspective that everyone is truly living their own life on their own timeline, and judging people without knowing what is going in their life only spreads negativity. I also gained a better sense of what I’m passionate about, and what I would like to potentially do for my career, although I’m still far from knowing if that’s where I’ll end up. I’m forever grateful for experiences that I’ve gained over the past 4 years and who I have become as a result. However, I still recognize that I still have a lot of room for growth, but I love who I am no matter how flawed I am.
I think the biggest thing I truly learned from my graduation is a lesson that I have learned several times before. Life is a series of moments. Our job is to make the most out of these moments and live a life we are truly proud of with people that mean the most to us. Cherish these moments because before you know it they are gone.
And now it is time for me to create brand new moments in the next chapter of my life. In the words of the late Nipsey Hussle, “The Marathon Continues.”
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Prabh
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