Hey everyone!

Happy Friday! You made it through the week, and look what came out on the other side! Warm, sunny, lovely weather and a whole slew of new opportunities and experiences. I've been thinking a lot lately about all the experiences and new opportunities I've had in the last year since I graduated college. It feels like just yesterday I was sending out my common app to a handful of schools, anxiously waiting for letters to return in the mail and to embark on my next life journey. I remember the day my parents dropped me off, my mom and I stood in the hallway hugging and crying, and she kept saying, "you can come home, just come home."

I didn't go home (well, permanently, at least). I went through my four years of college, fell in love,  fell in love with New York, and fell in love with my life. There are so many things I've learned since graduating, but here is just five of them.




1. Money comes and goes

I've always been a person that stresses about money. There have been times this year where I felt like I was really on the path to making it and other times I would break down, wondering how I would ever make it through. Something I learned really quickly, is money comes and goes. At the end of the day it is just up to us to be responsible, but other than that you can't stress about that.



2. Some friendships don't last forever

There have been many times I have learned this, but after college I found it once again to be true. Some friendships are built to be temporary and that's okay. Friendships end, but always be good to people.



3. The food you eat makes a big difference

Since graduating, I've had to learn to cook well for the first time in my life. There have been some weeks I've eaten really well and other weeks I've eaten (for lack of a better word), like crap. I never really believed in how much people hyped up this fact, but it's so true. My body runs so much smoother and supports my busy lifestyle when I treat it well.



4.  Everything is up to you

The best part about leaving college is you can do whatever you want. The day after I graduated, I had a whole head-between-knees, heavy breathing, ridiculous crying panic attack because I had no idea what to do or how to do it. Then I learned: the beauty of graduating college is it's one of the first, real times in your life when you can literally do whatever you want. Take a year to travel. Go to grad school. Hop into the workforce. Take up art. Join the Peace Corps. Do whatever you want.



5. You never stop learning.

I though college would be the biggest part of learning of my life, but this past year has taught me that's not even remotely close to true. I learned that the moments we learn most are the little ones, when you don't even realize it's happening at all. It's up to us to continue to strive to learn more, experience new things, and become better people. You no longer have assigned homework, so it's up to you to assign them to yourself. Explore parts of your brain you've never ventured into, dabble in new habits, be anything but stagnant and continue to challenge yourself to grow.

What have you learned since graduating college?