By Jaclyn Leduc
After a long and restful summer, the week before the start of senior year crept up faster than I thought it would. Feelings of excitement and anxiety were also creeping up on me. I felt excited because being at Bentley is something I enjoy and I was starting to miss it; anxious because it was senior year.
When move-in day arrived, I was ready to move into my first on-campus apartment. But, as I pulled up to Falcone North, I couldn’t help but realize it was the beginning of an end. Up until this point in my life, I have always had a first day of school to look toward. When summer ends, my internal clock tells me it’s time to start new classes, embark on new projects, and meet new people. As I remembered this chapter of my life was closing, I felt a surprising lump of sadness in my throat.
I thought I was supposed to be not only prepared, but elated that things like 8 a.m. classes and night bombs, group projects and midterms, were coming to an end. My emotions were conflicting because while I felt eager, I also felt a sense of overwhelming uncertainty.
Change is Bittersweet
What was I experiencing? In times when I felt happy to be embarking on my last year at Bentley, it was immediately negated by a sense of gloom. Maybe I would miss it here too much: grabbing a hot coffee from Einstein’s during class breaks, late night library study sessions, and even living on this hill of a campus. The constant hot and cold nature of my feelings, happy-to-leave or maybe-I-will-miss-it, were reflecting the essence of the situation I was dealing with: Change is bittersweet.
Graduating college is an amazing time. It’s an accomplishment that does not come easily. It seems the duration of my lifetime has been leading up to the moment I receive my diploma from Bentley President Gloria Larson. What about after that? I spent so long with my eyes on the prize, I forgot what the prize was meant for. With that diploma comes a new life, a change that I’m not sure I’m ready for.
The truth is that, when change comes, nothing is guaranteed. You’re forced to leave the life you’ve always known for one that is unknown. That’s the bitter part. I think about my last year as a student at Bentley, and although it is sad, I know it’s time for me to move forward toward a new life. With this new life comes new possibilities where dreams come to the surface, successes unfold, and a newfound happiness awaits. What could be sweeter than that?
