Sitting here on May 11th, a few weeks before my first year in college comes to a close, I’ve had more than enough time to reflect on the ups and downs. I can honestly say this has been one of the craziest years of my life, honestly more for bad reasons than good. I say that just being really more realistic than anything. My first semester my roommate got arrested, I lived in 3 different dorms in the span of 5 weeks at the end of the semester, had to change my major because I was struggling and I didn’t enjoy what I was doing, and I felt like I was completely out of control of everything. As a result of all of this, I was seriously considering transferring, I wanted to come back to NY and try to play basketball somewhere or go to a school with my friends from HS where I could find some stability. As a result of my better judgment, I stayed at UD for the second semester and I really started to find success for the first time. I really liked my new major and I found stability with my UD friends and I was really enjoying myself. Of course, when I finally settled in and life seemed to be going up, it came crashing down once again with COVID-19 and I lost all the momentum I had going for me. Much like everyone, I had to adjust to online learning and the whole idea of isolation and it’s been more than difficult.
Now don’t get me wrong, I would rather not have gone through all of that and had a smooth semester, that’s a no brainer. However, I mentioned how I’ve had a lot of time to think about everything being home as long as I have, and I genuinely am happy that I went through all of that because it’s built my character. It’s taught me two really key lessons that keep me at peace when some adversity comes my way. The first is that you can only worry about the things you’re able to control, and you can’t worry about things you’re unable to control. With hard work and effort into your goals and a little patience, everything really does get better in time, and always keeping that light at the end of the tunnel in mind certainly helped me a lot. The second thing is opening up to your support system when you need help. I hate being pitied, and so it’s a fault of mine to not seek out help when I actually need it because I was too prideful before to ask and I don’t wanna burden others with my problems. I wanted to solve everything on my own, and at a point, I just ran out of gas and I couldn’t deal with my stress anymore. Lucky for me, I have a wonderful girlfriend and a bunch of brothers that finally talked some sense into me once I opened up. They brought me back to earth, listened to me, and got me through that tough period. Now I know no matter how much pride I have in that moment, it’s always best to not be afraid to ask for help when you need it.
Been a pleasure being in class with you guys, wish all of you continued success!
-Austin
English 110 Spring 2020 10:10-11:00 
It’s good to hear that you were improving a lot during this semester; I wish the coronavirus hadn’t dampened that all. Like you, I have also struggled to ask for help and open up to people, often getting burnt out. I started opening up to my roommate first semester and it really helped once I knew I could trust her and I’m glad it worked out for you when you opened up to your girlfriend and brothers.
-Madison Gac
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I think you share the same perspective as many other college students. I felt that it was hard to adjust during the first semester as well and just when things started to piece together they ended abruptly. I felt the same lack of control and actually wrote my own essay about that. Its nice to hear that you’ve had support through these tough times and I hope you keep receiving that some energy in the future. Hopefully next semester will be better!
-Tess Williams
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Austin, I’m glad that you were able to overcome those struggles, they did not sound fun. I remember when I was going through times, my best friends mom told me the same thing: “you can only worry about the things you’re able to control, and you can’t worry about things you’re unable to control.” I have lived by that lesson and it honestly can make a difference in the amount of stress you can cause yourself; and worrying does nothing, but harm yourself when it comes to trying to fix things that are out of your control. College is a huge adjustment, and I admire that you stuck through it; first week I was telling my mom I needed to go to school closer to home, and the main thing that kept me from doing that was her refusal to pick me up from school. You stuck through everything and used the help around you and it’s relieving that your are happy with your decision. Having loved ones supporting you is so special; they know you more than anyone, and can think clearly even when we can’t. Best part is that you know they’ll always be by your side through anything. Thank you for sharing, and I wish you the best of luck going forward!
-Elizabeth
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