Graduation Speech : Midnight Road Trips

During my high school career I was able to make lots of friendships, but had few close friendships. I was unable to have a large amount of girlfriends, because I did not feel a good connection with them. Instead, I hung out with a group of guys and had two girlfriends who had similar life stories. When I was sixteen I started working and that was something I enjoyed doing to make money. Once high school was over I felt like I had so much to look forward to. When college came around I didn’t see the same people every day and had to make new friends here at Anderson. This was challenging for me, because the dorms are full of females which was something that I have not been used to.

“Long-distance relationships in college.” Does that sound frightening, or does it sound like a poorly stated joke? Many people believe that long distance relationships are the sole thing that you do not get yourself into when going off to college. You choose your university, you choose your sorority or fraternity, you choose your classes, and you chose your major, but whatever you do, you should never choose to be in a long-distance relationship when heading off to pursue higher education. For many newly dubbed “adults,” college life entails a world full of partying, studying, hooking up, and experimenting (whatever that may entail). College is the place where both guys and girls get a chance to possibly escape from their home towns, and

I was terribly nervous because I did not know one single person at JM. I thought I was going to sit alone at lunch and I never would make any friends. I also thought that I would be lost on the first day and go to all the wrong classes! Surprisingly, I made a friend at freshmen orientation. Her name was Monita. Unfortunately, Monita and I had no classes together except for lunch. At least I had someone to sit with at lunch and one of my fears were gone. On my first day, I went to all my classes without any confusion. I was not lost and I made a few friends. Eventually, I began to make more friends and adjust to my new high school. I even went to the football

I was a very shy kid. Making friends wasn’t my cup of tea when I was younger. Based on this you can imagine how nervous I was when we moved. Joseph Campbell wrote in The Hero With a Thousand Faces, “It is only when a man tames his own demons that he becomes the king of himself if not of the world.” I was preparing to start school again in August when I decided it would be smart to begin associating with kids my age in the area; so, I began spending time with my cousin Lief. After spending some time with Lief, he introduced me to some of his friends and taught me to how to appreciate

When I first come here, it is tough for me to make friends because all of the students here come from different backgrounds. I managed to overcome that problem by engaging with the clubs’ activities and participating in volunteering programs. I improved my self-confidence by make a lot of friends from day to day. This gives me a good impression that being in a wonderful college like Bunker Hill Community College really helps students to build themselves by brushing up their potentials. By connecting with people every day and knowing others, we can brush up our communication skills as well as widen our knowledge. Based from these experiences, I promised to myself to help the new students adapting themselves in the new world attracting them to get involved with clubs, activities and volunteering

The school year approached its end. Another summer to spend alone by myself. The cycle had been repeating since I was in grade school. Sadness choked me as I returned home and shut my door. Every year, the resolution was the same: I would try to make friends next year; however, every year, I felt myself falling back down into the same trap. By the time high school began, I no longer felt the numb sensation of sadness or the flow of tears as the final day of May became the last day I talked with my “friends.” I no longer expected to make any friends, or, more accurately, I no longer expected to be able to make any friends. The sheer possibility of befriending an individual appeared to me as foreign as speaking in latin. When I walked into school, what should have been a site of chatter, opportunity, and growth appeared to me as a form of imprisonment and torture; however, unbeknownst to me, I did have friends; something of which I did not recognize until years passed by. I grown attached to certain conversations; there were times where I felt the need to initiate a conversation rather than waiting for someone else to make one. It was not until one of my friends told me,”We’re your friends aren’t we?” when I realized I was not longer

College was a culture shock. Gone were my Asian and Latino friends with whom I found it so easy to relate. I was in a new environment surrounded by strangers from different places and backgrounds. I initially dealt with this by gravitating toward people who were similar to me or appeared to share the same values I had grown up with. Instead of trying to develop relationships with students from diverse backgrounds, I put up my guard, with doubts about how I could relate to them. However, everything changed one fateful night in the college dining hall at the much-anticipated fajita bar.

For most of my first year in college I felt lost and alone; I was not really involved with clubs or organizations until my second year at Miami Dade Honors College and I don’t want to have that same experience while attending FIU. I know that being part of the Honors College at FIU will benefit me because of the tight knit community, but it is always good to have friends and communicate with people from all backgrounds. After breaking through my shell, I have learned that I enjoy other people’s company.

For all students leaving high school, college is a diversifying experience that improves students’ outlook of the world. Many students leave high school having known a small group of friends very closely and only spending time around this group of kids. In addition to

Being made to go through the whole process of becoming friends was not what I wanted. I had a lot of friends at Galena and had been friends with these kids since kindergarten. We had grown up together and I didn’t want to leave them so soon. My mom told me Baxter was only about 10 minutes away so that took the ease off a little. I had two really good friends who I did everything with. I remember wondering if they would be sad, or if I would get to see them anymore. The feeling of going to a new place and possibly not making any new friends frightened me. How long would it take me to make new friends, if I made any? All the worrying was for nothing though. I remember exactly what happened when I made my first friend at Baxter. I call to mind being anxious as I walked into my new classroom, feeling the glances of all my classmates. Thinking how uncomfortable I felt as all the kids talked about their summers with their friends and all the fun they had, when suddenly I heard someone say hi. I turned towards the voice and saw a small brown haired girl, who I would soon learn was Mallory. After learning each other’s names, she then asked me “Do you want to be friends?” and that’s how my first friendship started. I made many new friends that day and felt all my worries soon drift away. Though I didn’t know how well making new friends would go, at the time it was a frightening thought for me. With

According to Bogle, dating was prominent between college students from the 1920s to the 1960s. Thereafter, college enrollment increased, making college an important place for sexual encounters (Bogle 2). Although college is a time for young adults to experiment and discover themselves, it is also a time for them to begin making smart and healthy choices, as this is generally the first time they are leaving home and living on their own. Karen Arnold argues in her article “College Student Development and the Hook Up Culture” that identity development occurs in college and consists of three components: “developing competence, moving through autonomy toward interdependence, and developing mature interpersonal relations” (Arnold 2). If one does not properly develop competency and mature interpersonal relations, one can experience

As I was putting my mind and focus on just school, I lost many friends along the way with the new mindset I had. The students who were smart and I jokingly made jokes that they’re lame or they’re nerds, soon became my new circle of friends. I took AP classes, and they helped me and I learned more and more each day. Turns out that they’re very cool and not that bad. Soon, I began to join extra-curricular activities like Science Club, Drama Club, Student Council, Ready Set Teach,etc. I went to Science Fair Regional for the very first time and also was in UIL One-Act Play and they were both awesome,unforgettable experiences for

Moving schools all of the time made it hard for me to make friends and be social with my peers. After moving to Ohio I learned how to be myself, and I learned how to make friends who had the same interests. On the first day of school in fifth grade a pretty blonde girl sat behind me. I was curious as to who she was because I had never seen her before; I turned around and introduced myself. From that little interaction we became best friends and are still pretty good friends to this day. Living in a small town has taught me how to better interact with people and making new friends. I know that when I go off on my own to college that I will have no problem with this. Meeting new people and forming relationships will come naturally to me all because I have had the experience of living in a small town where you have a relationship with everybody you know.

For as long as I can remember I’ve had the same group of friends, but coming into high school I met a lot of new people. I met some of my best friends here and my boyfriend.I’ve reached out to a lot of different people I didn’t really expect to be friends with. I learned that you really can’t judge a book by a cover and that probably sounds cliche, but some of the people I thought I’d never get along with became some of my really good friends.

5. Many relationships are started (and ended) throughout college years. Those who are in relationships have to deal with the stresses of arguments, seeing someone too much, seeing someone not enough and those pesky long-distance relationships.