On Unchecked Boxes and Sophomore Year
Hi. My name is Lee, and I’m a compulsive to-do list maker with a schedule that barely gives me time to eat sitting down.
(Cue soft chorus of “hi, Lee”s from the assembled crowd, Styrofoam cups of instant coffee with non-dairy creamer teetering on their knees.)
All jokes about the Type A Personality Support Group aside—and if anyone knows of one of those in the Nashville area, give me a shout—I’ve occasionally felt this semester like I’m living in a world where I never actually cross out all of the things on my to-do list. Sometimes they get scooted up a day or two, with little blurbs in my planner like “take Orgo notes” or “get flu shot” re-written each day with increasing urgency—“take Orgo notes” becoming “TAKE ORGO NOTES,” and, if things get really dire, simply “ORGOOOOOO” underlined several times over.
This stressed me out at first. I knew that taking seventeen hours, eleven of which consisted of hard science and lab classes, was going to mean that I would need to really stay on top of my schedule. I’m also running a marathon in a little over six weeks (eep!), so getting sufficient sleep and not subsisting on microwavable Munchie Mart meals has been essential (although the Amy’s pesto tortellini is a solid substitute for Tort Tuesday in a pinch).
What I’m saying here, if you haven’t gathered, is that my plate is pretty full.
Over the last few weeks, though, I’ve reached a Zen-like place of acceptance about how busy I am this semester. I’ve already spent more time with friends in the past month than I think I did for most of freshman year, gotten to explore Nashville more, and really enjoyed all of the work I have for my classes, even though it’s a heavy courseload. There’s that old, semi-gimmicky saying that goes “find a job you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life,” right? Well, I think I’m starting to figure out that it applies to college, too.
As a Tour Guide, I have the distinct pleasure every week of telling families and prospective students just why I chose to make Vanderbilt my home, and I’ve jumped right on the bandwagon of waving our “Happiest Students in America” statistic around like a pom-pom whenever I can. We’re serious about that statistic ‘round these parts, let me tell y’all. And what better indicator of happiness is there than being excited about all the boxes yet left un-checked?
- [Photo credits to the Vanderbilt Facebook page]
Spotted above: me in my natural habitat, yelling at confused and excited first-years on Move-In Day (I’m the overenthusiastic blonde one. Also, disclaimer: I was standing off the curb. I’m not that short. Let it be known.)