It feels weird, walking around the campus that was such a central part of my life for the last three years. It feels... freeing in a way to know I owe no obligations to the classrooms, buildings, or people there. I'm not required to be anywhere or do anything or sit for a number of hours pretending to listen....
I love not having my life dominated by people telling me what I should read, of listening to people process their privilege aloud to the detriment of my emotional and mental well-being, of shelling out thousands of dollars for an education that makes me question how much I actually learned....
I feel nostalgic about the community I was a part of--making eye contact with fellow poc/rad folk/qweers when a particularly ignorant person felt the need to make their tired opinions known, of bonding over the mountains of homework and stress of deadlines; of the delirium of academic/student leadership/employment/social life that weighed so heavily on the shoulders of my peers and me.
I have fond memories, and some actual nightmares of my undergrad years. I'm glad to have made it through the trials, the first of my family. I will not forget the lessons I've learnt, and I will work hard in giving back--to my peers and to the family who will pursue higher education.
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