I feel so bad for being so neglectful with this blog. I just have so many blogs and journals right now that it's hard to keep on task with all of them. Darn me and my need for creative writing outlets haha.
It is summer break for ODU students now except for the few who have opted to take summer courses of course. I contemplated taking a summer course myself, but decided I'd rather focus on work and friends this summer. I am already limited in my free time as it is.
So I decided not to graduate in May. I still needed 2 classes to graduate, but I already had 5 first semester which was exhausting on top of Track and Student Senate and ResLife duties not to mention having a good relationship with family and friends and an active social life. One of the classes I needed to graduate is being offered in the Fall with one of my favorite professors, Sister Fatula, so I decided to just stay the extra semester and take it with her rather than go through the hassle of finding a subsititute class and getting it approved and all.
This has actually turned out to be a very nice blessing in a very obvious disguise since I was not at all ready to leave ODU yet. It's not just that it's my home now and I can't bear to leave it for sentimental reasons though that is true too. I am also just not ready to go out into the real world and be a grown up. This gives me a little time to postpone figuring out whether or not I want to do grad school or travel or work to pay off student loans or beginning a "big girl" career. The extra semester also gives me more time to build lasting friendships and leave the campus with a good lasting impression of myself. And of course, I will increase my knowledge and Dominican thinking skills through the additional classes I will be taking.
If I hadn't decided to stay the extra semester, I would not have lucked out with the awesome job opportunities I have this summer. At the very end of Spring semester, there was an opening for a position with ResLife and Student Development as a summer RA and an Orientation leader with food and housing provided for me on campus. I also got offered a position working as a studen ambassador over the summer, so I am basically getting paid to live on campus and do various tasks around the school which is awesome since my family moved recently so I would have had a hard time getting just for a month or so over the summer. It's also great to spend more time on campus before I graduate in December. There's quite a few of my friends from ODU living nearby and visiting from around Ohio, so I am able to see a lot more people this summer than I got to in the past due to my lack of car and being one of very few Panthers from the Cleveland area.
It has been a lot of work at some points, but for the most part, this summer at ODU has been surprisingly awesome! I feel I made the right decision taking these positions. It's very beneficial for me emotionally, financially, physically, and socially. I miss my family a lot, but I know I'd be bored, poor, and lonely if I had moved back home for the summer. And it would have been very hard for me to motivate myself to find a job and really get on my feet especially if I had graduated in May like I was originally supposed to.
Basically, my point here is that ODU has really given me a lot- jobs, education, amazing friends, faith, and fantastic life experiences. When I do finally graduate, I know I will be leaving here with great stories, awesome relationships, and the skills I need to survive in the real world and be the person I want to be. I am not sure that any other school could have done for me what ODU is doing. I am just so much better now than I was when I first entered Ohio Dominican in May 2008 for my Orientation. I only hope that all of ODU's students can see and appreciate this amazing place and take full advantage of all it has to offer. My biggest regret is not realizing this sooner. My last 4 years could have been even more amazing had I taken the time to really explore and get to know the campus and get involved and build even more and better relationships. So my advice to every college student is make the most of these 4 years, because you aren't going to get them back and they are over before you know it. Every day can be an amazing day if you let it, so let your college years be amazing. There's a lot your school can do for you.
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