COLUMN: We're hear to pursue our dreams
College years are the best of our lives.
Those who are lucky enough to experience it know what I’m talking about. This is where reality slaps us in the face and teaches life lessons that cannot be learned anywhere else.Unfortunately, I’ve had many people tell me it’s a waste of time and money here at Central Michigan University. Those particular people are single-minded.
There are many who don’t believe in universities, or really any sort of college for that matter. They think it’s a waste of money that will get you nowhere, unless you’re going to be a doctor or a teacher.
I’ve heard it a million times, “you can learn everything they’re teaching you by going to the library,” or, “you’re wasting your time with all that pie-in-the-sky nonsense.”
It seems as if they’ve given up on the goals they had growing up just so they can make a paycheck at a job they don’t love.
This is no way to live a life.
You have to do what you’re passionate about and that is what universities are designed to do.
You can get into a program that suits you, learn what you love, then apply it to the real world. It really helps you find the person you want to be.
Going away to a university is good for you as a person. You experience so many different types of people, cultures and situations that cannot be had at a community college. Take it from me. The three years I spent in community college, I was lonely, oblivious to the world around me and somewhat depressed.
Don’t get me wrong, I loved saving money and spending time with my family, I just felt trapped. It seemed as if life was passing me by and I was just sitting there watching like it was an IMAX 3D movie.
I transferred to CMU in the fall of 2011 and since then I have learned more about life than I did in the years I spent in community college. Some good experiences, some bad, but all of them have made me a wiser person in the long run and I wouldn’t trade any of them for the world.
Going away to a university is a truly wonderful experience for any 18 to 25-year-old. It’s that tipping point of becoming an adult where we need to buckle down, but still have fun and experience the world around us.
It’s the last couple years where we can be innocent and free. Because of this, we have to cherish every single moment, good and bad.
We might be spending a pretty penny on something we’re not sure will pay off in the end, but at least we are taking that risk just to try to achieve our dreams.
