Editorial: The Reality of Growing up

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This week's editorial is about growing up and transitioning into life post-graduation. Photo via Pixabay.com

The spring semester has arrived, and for many students, this will be their last semester here at Rowan University. While this is a celebratory moment in a student’s life, it is also a moment of change. 

There are two kinds of students: those who find themselves adrift in a sea of decisions and transitions, and captains that skipper their ship through the tumultuous waters. 

If you’re the first, you might be feeling the crashing waves of important life choices. And when you make a decision you’re only faced with another, and sometimes bigger, wave of consequences.

Most soon-to-be graduates are in their 20s. Early class schedules, late nights studying and last-minute projects are all you’ve ever known. But no matter how great a student you are or how many notes you take, there’s no study guide for growing up.

Growing up. Yes, the thing many of us wanted to fast forward to as a child but now want to slow down. When you think of growing up you probably feel nostalgia. Fond memories of being a child come flooding back to you and problems that used to feel so big now make you smile. 

However, when we come back to the present, it suddenly looks like the sky got a little grayer. Rent, job applications, work schedules and jam-packed agenda books are the only thing you can think about. And even if you try to go back to that state of bliss, the stress of your responsibilities holds you back.

The truth of the matter is that growing up is inevitable. We all age, we all change and we all move on with our lives. It’s sad– it truly is. However, that’s not the only lens we should look at growing up through.

What did you imagine yourself doing when you were a child? Chances are that whatever it was, it made your eight-year-old eyes widen. Some of you dreamed of becoming an astronaut flying to the moon or becoming a pop star singing in front of millions, and it’s probably safe to say that most people reading this editorial aren’t pursuing either one of those careers. 

But whatever you are doing with your life after graduating, you should look at it with the same wide eyes as your eight-year-old self. It’s cliche, but graduating isn’t the end. For you seniors, post-graduation life is full of possibilities and opportunities but only if you allow yourself to accept the change.

Here at The Whit, we are saying goodbye to five of our editors and a number of our writers. While we are sad to see them go, we are also unbelievably proud of them and excited to see where they all go. 

Navigating your way to shore is not easy when you don’t know east from west. But don’t worry, you’ll make it through the storm.

For comments/questions about this story, tweet @TheWhitOnlineor email Thewhitopinion23@gmail.com.

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