A senior's state of mind

By Suzie Roth
Co-Managing and Advertising Editor

Being in college is more than parties, freedom from your parents, learning about new rules, and perhaps, the best ways to get around them. At some point, we all learn we have to answer to someone. Sometimes it is your parents or professors, other times it is your friends or the police, and for many perhaps a higher being. I have found however, that learning to answer to yourself can not only be the hardest, but can also be the most rewarding.

I hope I don’t burst any bubbles here, but no matter how hard you try, you will never be able to make enough time to be in every activity, go to every party, ace every test or be perfect at everything you try. Trying to do so, will not only lead to a life of sleep deprivation, but also a sense of defeat. All you can do is your best, choose your priorities, and let those be your guide.

Perhaps you won’t believe me, maybe you already know, but the professors that spend their days lecturing us about science, math, business and so much more, do so because they want to make sure we have the tools to be successful after we leave SMU, just as much as they want us to be successful in the classes that they teach.

Throughout my time at SMU, some of my professors have seen my best work, others perhaps my worst, but having to come to terms with the fact that even with all the privileges I have been blessed with, I cannot do better has to be the hardest.

This guilt doesn’t have to make you weak; rather it can serve as an opportunity for self-reflection. Admitting that relative to your life, you have challenges to overcome allows you to begin to accept yourself, and opens your eyes to your problems in perspective to others.

Being in college is more than an opportunity to earn a degree. Being an undergrad at Saint Mary’s has been a gift that has not only prepared me for life after graduation, but taught me how to succeed at being me, as I try to figure the rest of this crazy life out in the process. Everyone’s college experience is different. So own yours and make it what you want it to be, but don’t forget to thank those who helped you along the way.

I may just be a senior with the hope of graduation in her sights, but the sooner you learn to take a look in the mirror and truly examine the person who looks back at you, that is the point when your true priorities surface.