A New Start - Blog 7

As of November of 2018, I have been in college for about four months. I feel like I have only just begun my time here, but I have already learned so much. When I graduated high school, I thought about where I wanted to focus my time and energy going into college. I felt like I had spent too much time focusing on my academics in high school and that other parts of my life were suffering, particularly my relationships with my friends. So, I decided that in college I would make it a serious goal to make some good friends. I have heard that the people you meet in college will teach you just as much as your professors will, so this seems like a good idea to me.

In my first month at FSU I began putting myself out in public more than I have in the past, and also hanging out with people who I wouldn’t have hung out with in the past. This led to me making two good friends who I talk to often. One of my favorite things about this new relationship is that we are comfortable talking and not doing anything else. Over the course of the semester we have had many long conversations where we did nothing but talk about our lives. We have talked about all kinds of things, but one conversation that stands out in my memory is when we talked about previous friendships we had. During the conversation we each reminisced about past friendships and the people who had come and gone in our lives.

During the conversation I realized that several people who used to be my best friends were actually very bad friends. I had been unhappy with those friendships for years, but those people were my friends since I was young so I wanted to maintain that relationship and work out our differences. As I was talking about those past relationships, I realized that my new friends treat me much better than my old ones ever did. They listened when I spoke and didn’t disrespect my opinions, and also treated me with more respect than those previous friends ever had.

That conversation gave me a lot of perspective on my current relationships. I’m not sure what caused it, but I now feel much more empowered when it comes to picking friends. I don’t feel like I have to stick with someone if they make me unhappy just because we are friends. However, I am sure that if I did not have that conversation several months ago, I would not feel as prepared as I do now to keep meeting people and making new friends. Those people who listened to me and took the time to understand where I was coming from truly made the difference in making me feel understood and respected. I believe that that conversation has also made me a better friend. Reflecting on past relationships I was unhappy with made me realize that I had my fair share of bad habits also. I think that using that knowledge to make myself a better person has been just as important for my personal growth as associating with the right people has been.