College Expectations

“I feel like everyone who goes to The University of Texas is blessed and lucky to be there because they're getting a chance to be as good as they can be.” –Alan Bean

Reading back over my original expectations of the University, I found that all of my expectations have either been met or have begun to be met. To begin, the freedom is unbelievable. When I first got here, I would have random feelings of nervousness. I was unsure as to what was prompting these odd feelings but soon realized exactly what it was: I was so enthralled with the freedom and college life and still so unaccustomed to it that I felt it was unreal, that some one was going to come steal me away, pull the rug out from under me and bring me back home to my parents and curfew and rules. A couple weeks passed and it finally set in that I was, in fact, going to stay at the University and my nervousness subsided. I have since had many challenging lessons dealing with freedom, from TIME MANAGEMENT, to right versus wrong, to safety issues. One week in particular, I got a total of about 12 hours of sleep, which made for a difficult time in staying awake during classes. I have had to decide whether certain situations, such as walking home by myself late at night, are safe. Overall, I have done quite a good job of managing my time and making decisions. I am sure I will make more mistakes and have more weeks with only 12 hours of sleep, but my ability to use my freedom in a positive way will continue to better as time passes.

Friend-wise, students here at the University never cease to amaze me. It seems there is always an odd character lurking around the corner, waiting to introduce himself and become a new friend. My “college best friend” entered my life early in the year with her constant giggling and “Hi! I’m Kristin! Smiling’ my favorite!” kind of attitude. From her intelligence and interest in travel and sports to her willingness to burst into song and dance as we walk down the drag from a late night visit to Kerby Lane to our long discussion on topics varying from religious beliefs to our current crushes, she has been a bright light in my college experience thus far. During my sister’s (she seems to appear in my entries quite often) first semester at UT, she became best friends with Melissa, a friendship that has blossomed and grown stronger over the years. I have a feeling that Kristin will be my Melissa, a friend on all fronts that will last for years to come.

The opportunities at UT seem to be endless in their magnitude and their contents. Already, the opportunity to study at Oxford has presented itself, which is “for some…the perfet place for contemplation, for others a protective environment within which to indulge their fancies” (636). Unfortunately, I don’t think I will be able to go on this fabulous excursion due to the $10,000 it would cost for 6 weeks, however I know that I will have many more chances to do things like this.

As I read Freddie Steinmark’s tragic story of his battle with cancer, I found me eyes swelling with tears and a feeling of chills overcoming my body. Maybe this is because I can so closely relate with terrible toll cancer takes on one’s body, from my aunt, to my grandma and grandpa to a scare with my mother. Or perhaps it is purely the amazement I feel that one man can make such an impact on not only his teammates and the future team, but the University as a whole. Over three decades later, “80,000 empty seats [are] filled by the Orange-blooded faithful who have come from every where from Jester West to the West Coast to catch a glimpse of the…Longhorn football team” (172). Like many, coming to the University of Texas I wanted “scholarship, new experiences, and freedom from [my] past self” (177). UT has so much to offer, from its tradition of excellence to its outstanding athletics to the diversity that defines it.

Currently, my expectations remain similar to my previous expectations. I plan to grow as a person, gain knowledge, meet friends, and experience Austin. Sometimes, I find myself thinking that Austin is “not a real city at all but a fiction, a vision and an illusion” of something so great and so different that it could merely not exist in real life. This point is reinforced as I sit here writing my paper in Starbucks, watching individuals from all walks of life pass in and our of the small coffee shop, each with their own story, their own truth. I am continually surprised by the events that seem to jump into my life and take me on adventures I could have never imagined. It seems there is always "a spot a bit brighter" (652), somewhere just around the corner that has more to offer, a greater opportunity awaiting me. I hope everyday that these adventures continue and take me to the wildest of places.