The title of this post has a question mark right after it because I still have one more big thing to do before I can say good-bye to college: Macaulay graduation. Ahhh.
I had my Hunter graduation this past Wednesday. It ended up being a great day, but we were running late the whole day. haha. My hair appointment was scheduled for 11 AM, but I didn't end up sitting in the chair until about 50 minutes later because it took an hour to do the curls of the girl before me. But anyway, my mom and I got our hair done and rushed out of there to go home and get dressed. We got home at the time that we originally wanted to leave for graduation. :p We got dressed and hightailed it to the train station. We got to MSG a few minutes after 2 PM (which is when they recommended everyone to show up) so the timing ended up being fine. But then it was kind of a mess at MSG because I couldn't figure out where I had to go to line up. My friend from middle school (who was graduating with me) ended up running into me, and we eventually found our way to where we had to be. haha. Thank God for her.
The ceremony was absolutely beautiful and emotional and lovely. Sitting in the theater at MSG, watching President Raab highlight so many amazing students in our graduating class, hearing the words of encouragement from the speakers, and watching the confetti coming down on us (and hearing "A Sky Full Of Stars" at the same time) are all things that I'll never forget.
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| A piece of confetti, the program, and a pom-pom. haha |
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| I had to get that MSG shot. Forgive the misplaced hood. I couldn't get it to sit quite right. haha |
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| Floral all day. |
It also hasn't felt like the end because I'm applying to med school, and I'm still at Hunter all the time taking care of business related to that. It's not a clear good-bye like it was in high school. I think that's actually a good thing though because I'm blessed to still be able to use my Macaulay advisor post-graduation to figure out this whole med school thing. I also just want to be a great alumna and to give back my time and money to make Hunter (and Macaulay Hunter) a continuously better place for students.
Plus, even though I had a more solid good-bye with high school, I've gone back to visit a bunch of times. I went back three times during my freshman year and once every year since. haha. What can I say? When you spend so much time in one place and the people there mean a lot to you, then you should make the effort to continue those relationships.
Both Macaulay and Hunter ask graduating students to contribute to a senior class gift as a way to give back for all that we've received. They ask for $20.15 (in honor of our graduating year), but students are welcome to give more or less than that. I was happy to give $20 to each, and I hope to continue giving back in the years to come. And hopefully in greater amounts as I start to make money. haha
Some things that make me proud of my college experience:
1. Getting over my fear of escalators. Before I started college, I avoided escalators like the plague. I have a lifelong fear of heights, and escalators had always freaked me out with their dizzying heights and unstable nature. When I first visited Hunter as part of a campus tour at the end of my junior year of high school, I freaked out about the escalators in the main building. Just weeks into my freshman year at Hunter, I was over my fear. haha.
2. Never pulling an all-nighter. Seriously. I've only stayed up until 12:30 AM.
3. Working directly with patients. I remember the butterflies in my stomach before walking into my first patient room. And then, how quickly it began to feel natural.
4. Working in a lab. Working in a professional lab gave me a lot of respect for what scientists do everyday and made me comfortable in the lab environment.
5. Making good friends. I'm happy to say that I'm still friends with people that I met during my first couple of weeks of college. My friends have given me a lot of good memories and opened up my world more than they could know.
6. Being in a study group. One of those friends that I met during that semester is the one who started our bio study group. The five of us (others joined us for some sessions but didn't stay permanently) studied together for two semesters. I didn't believe in study groups before this one, and now, I tell everyone that they're a great idea if done right.
7. Love. That's all I'll say about that. ;)
8. Re-imagining my style. I started adding more skirts and dresses to my wardrobe and just paying more attention to what I wear. It's been a lot of fun exploring my style.
9. Picking myself up after Orgo I. I had difficult first half of my sophomore year because of my struggles with taking Orgo I along with 4 other classes. But then, I came back that second semester and got myself an A- in Orgo II. One of the happiest moments in college.
And finally....
10. Not giving up. I kept on going through all of the anxiety-ridden moments. I stayed and persisted and just kept moving. And believe me, there were a number of times when I felt like I was drowning in anxiety. But I've made it my mission to learn how to deal with whatever is thrown at me. I haven't mastered it yet (and maybe I never will), but just paying attention to my breath and giving myself time to rest has done wonders.
Only one more post left...
S.
For this last semester, I've decided that I'll share one cool/interesting/thought-provoking thing that I happen to run across during the week:
Commencement photos
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