Dear freshmen,
Masks, CampusClear, and virtual Candlewish. My first semester at Rollins certainly did not go as I had imagined. As an eager high school freshman, I had very distinct ideas of what the future would hold four years down the line. The ideas did not include beginning college amid a global pandemic. When I first arrived on campus, I was not greeted as I had expected and seen in movies. Move-ins were not the typical cheerful, hands-on, and crowded scene they are today. Orientation week was also vastly different. In order to adhere to COVID-19 safety protocols, information sessions, including Convocation 2021, were held through livestreams watched by RCCs in classrooms, SPARC Day took place on campus in cohorts, and virtual breakout rooms at the Get Involved Fair were quite the headache!
Today, as a senior, I look back on the last few years and recognize all that Rollins has taught me about myself and the world. I have certainly expanded my vocabulary and word count, but I have also expanded my work and life experience in ways that I never expected. There is no way I would have believed anyone who told me I would be Editor-in-Chief of The Sandspur during my last year at Rollins. Before beginning college, I never associated myself with the word ‘leader’, and four years later, I have found myself leading in various jobs and organizations across campus. I also would have never believed that I could be a double major and minor all while balancing a year-long thesis project. I always knew I was ambitious, but not that ambitious…
That being said, I know that I am still very early in my learning career and have so much more to learn after I graduate in the spring. Of course, Rollins has offered me more than I can put into words, but there is still so much that I do not know, and I am excited to learn through life’s many experiences.
My advice to first-years is to truly take advantage of any and every opportunity that seems interesting, not only at Rollins but beyond. Don’t let go of something because you think you’re not quite cut out for it. Don’t be scared to take a chance out of fear of failure. College life will be full of little triumphs and failures, but, for lack of a less cliché saying, such is life itself. This is the time to try and fail and try again. You will find your niche; you just have to look for it. And don’t be afraid to fail.
–Paloma Kluger, Editor-in-Chief of The Sandspur
I remember my freshman move-in day as if I’m still eighteen. Only two years ago did I first move in, and yet there are parts of myself now that I know my eighteen-year-old self would not recognize. Something no one ever told me before I entered college was how quickly life moves when you get older, how much you can change within even a short period of time.
I never thought that my freshman self, sitting so nervously at my first Sandspur article assignment, praying just for a position as a freelancer, would grow to be the confident, determined Managing Editor I am today. I never thought that, within only two years, though still very young and very unsure of many things, I would know that whatever wild opportunities life presents me, no matter how demanding, I can handle it. I never expected to encounter all the experiences I’ve had, to meet all the new people I’ve gotten to know, and I certainly never expected to reach the position I’m in now at The Sandspur. That being said, I’m really happy with where I’ve wound up, and I’m very grateful for everyone who’s supported me throughout my journey.
My advice to freshmen is this: Do not be afraid of change. It is inevitable. Even if you think you know who you are at the start of college, this will shift, even throughout the course of your first year. I used to think this was a bad thing. It used to scare me to think about how each part of life, or in college each year, each semester, even, is a phase. Trust me, it will become a relief. If everything remained the same, how would you have room to grow from new experiences? (And believe me, you will have a lot of them in college.)
The best thing you can do is to figure out what you want, who you aspire to be. Embrace every opportunity to reach this goal. Change is scary, but remember that the people who really matter in your life will always be there, the essence of what makes you unique will always stay engrained in you. Go forth confidently, with an open mind, and make the most of your years at Rollins!
–Sarah Ogden, Managing Editor of The Sandspur
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