One Semester Down

Last semester went by so quickly, and I am sure that some of my fellow polar bears can agree with that! As I have mentioned before, I am a transfer sophomore, so no it was not my first semester of college, but it was my first semester at Ohio Northern University! I didn't know exactly how my transition was going to go considering I am coming all the way from Alabama, but I would like to share with you a few things that happened to me last semester that lead me to have a great, fast first semester here in Ada.

1.  Good Friends

Having a good group of friends is so important in college. If you come in as a freshman, it is easy to meet a lot of people at first because everyone is excited and it is all new to each of them. However, coming in as a transfer (feeling like a freshman sometimes) is not as simple. I have been through this before and have experience with being away from home unlike a lot of the freshmen I met. However, I do play tennis here, and that gave me an automatic in to a group. A majority of my team are freshmen, and so I tend to hang out with them a lot and even though I'm older, I am experiencing this school just as new and the same as them. It is so important, in my opinion, to find people who truly make you happy and make you a better person. These are the friendships that will last a lifetime.

2.  Staying Busy

As I mentioned before, I am on the tennis team. This keeps me occupied a lot of the time, next to school of course. I tried to rush for a sorority, but realized I was already so busy, that I really wouldn't have enough time to commit to all three things. It is so easy to get caught up in the lazy lifestyle of college by just watching movies and eating snacks alone in your room. I have seen many people do this, and it is because they have nothing to do. I feel like because I got so involved, I was able to be happy and stay busy therefore the semester flew by!

3.  Positive Attitude

Okay, I know I sound so cliche right now and that I am trying to sound like my whole life is together, but from personal experience I know how important it is to stay positive. At the previous college I attended, I was so unhappy with being at the school in general. I just knew it wasn't the place I should or wanted to be. That's where I fell under the trap of feeling lonely and negative about everything. I got my fresh start that I wanted here in Ohio, and I knew as hard as it seems, I needed to maintain a positive attitude whether it be about school, tennis, or the cold weather that I wasn't used to! 

By following just these few things, I got to have a great first semester, and it was over in a blink of an eye! If anybody feels the same way, I would love for you to share your thoughts!

Here is a picture of the ONU tennis team!