Wow. This is crazy. The semester has come to an end. We just needed to survive finals. It’s definitely been a semester. To be honest, it’s definitely been a YEAR.
To get ready for these reflections, I always like to go back and scan through my past publications for this column. Not only do I get to remind myself how much of a comedic genius I am (I often find myself laughing and kicking my feet at my own jokes), but I also get to refresh my memory on how my year has been. Let’s just say, judging by my subtitles alone, you can probably guess the type of year I had: “Current objective — survive,” “Crashing out in Tisch basement,” “Wow, what a semester (it’s only been a month).”
As you can probably tell, we have A LOT to unpack for this reflection.
Before I jump in, I wanted to send some thank yous before the year ends. First, to the Daily and its incredibly hard-working staff and editors. As someone who (full disclosure) has not shown up to a single meeting this entire year (I’m sorry — I like to maintain my mysterious persona around the Daily office), I can only imagine how much work goes into sustaining such a functional and crucial operation. To anyone who has had the misfortune of editing one of my columns: Thank you (and perhaps try to fix your karma because something must have gone wrong for you to end up editing this). A Jumbo’s Journey would not be what it is without you — fixing my inordinate number of grammatical errors, removing all the profane words I try to sneak in and ruthlessly deleting every Oxford comma I use (which, for the record, I’m still pissed about).
Second, to my readers: Thank you. This year, I learned that a solid number of people actually read this column (which is surprising). To think there are people out there willing to listen to my rambling thoughts and unsolicited stories is inspiring. Even though I can’t meet all of you and sign autographs (tragic, I know), just know that I appreciate you. I do this for you.
This year is difficult to describe. My first year was full of meeting new people, partying every day of the week (not an exaggeration), and just riding the highs and lows of college. But this year? It was hard to find that same excitement. That same chase. This year, I wasn’t meeting as many new people (unless I tapped into the first-year class, which, just writing that sounds wrong), my body can’t handle going out on a Monday night anymore and college was, just college. For a while, it felt like a routine: sleep, eat, work — repeat. And then wait for the weekend to do a little more sleeping, eating and working.
I know that I’m not the only one. And I’m definitely not saying that this is just a sophomore phenomena or that first-years can’t feel this feeling too (once they stop eating with their fingers maybe).
I remember a conversation I had late one night with a friend — one of those unplanned, half-delirious talks that somehow crack everything open. It was at 574 Boston Ave. (surprisingly a conducive environment for emotional conversations) and instead of doing work, we just — talked. Not just about life or college, but about everything. And while the conversation didn’t fix anything overnight, it helped me realize something important.
Sometimes, life just is.
Maybe, that’s the whole point. Maybe, college isn’t supposed to be defined by my crashouts in Tisch basement or the parties I attend on weekends, but rather by those peaceful moments sitting on the quad in silence, staring at nothing. The small, quiet moments that don’t make it onto Instagram. The late-night talks that don’t have neat endings. The ordinary days that, somehow, stitch together into something extraordinary when you’re not even looking.
This year has taught me that the journey — our journey — isn’t always loud or obvious. Sometimes it’s subtle. Sometimes it’s just being here, showing up and letting life happen to you.
At the end of the day, that’s what college — or life for that matter — is truly about. This year wasn’t a perfect highlight reel. I wasn’t chasing this picturesque ‘college experience’ like I did my first year. Life is not about sprinting toward some perfect version of life we all have in our heads. It’s about the in-between. The small steps. The quiet moments. And maybe, just maybe, that’s the whole point.
Thank you for being on this journey with me. See you next year <3
With love, always,
Ben Rachel
