Column By Erin Gutzwiller
As I loaded my suitcase and blanket into my roommate’s car, the realization of the 14-hour drive ahead began to set in.
But that’s not the only thought that crossed my mind; I realized that this was my very last spring break. This was the last time that my friends and I could do what we want with no worries. This was the week that we were to forget about what our future holds, or does not hold for some. We were to let go of the annoyance of job seeking and the anticipation of hearing from possible employers and have one last big blow out before graduation. Because come May, I will be walking across the stage and receiving my college diploma, closing one chapter of my life and beginning a new one. So I better live it up every chance that I get in Florida and do as one of my friends always says, “Go Big or Go Home.” And returning to classes and school work were the furthest from our minds, so going big was what we had to do.
On Friday evening, a group of about 25 Bridgewater College students were preparing for the long drive to Panama City, Fla. Everyone had the same thoughts about the week ahead, “Go Big,” and our destination was clear. After all, Panama City was rated the number-one college spring break spot, and MTV was located right outside our hotel. What more could a college student want? The chance to be seen by millions on television and perhaps do something crazy, if the drinks permitted. Yes, it was our last chance for one last blow out and one big horary, the last chance before the real world smacked us right square in the face.
I knew that when I returned to school I needed to find a job for the day and be accepted into my graduate-school program during the evenings. It was time to become an adult in the world. My mom was handing me my cell-phone bill, I had loans that I needed to pay back, and I needed to find my own dental and health insurance. Talk about a rude awakening; if this was not one, then I do not know what is. For most seniors in college, they are about to step into a new world, a world unknown. For some, like me, this is a scary but a new and different path. Just as graduation is bitter sweet, so is stepping out on your own for the first time. Everything is exciting because it is new but scary at the same time. Now I have to face reality and be a grown up, be in charge of myself and my life. The scary thing is right now I am not sure what lies ahead for my future.
Spring break in Panama City was amazing, the best time of my life. It was everything that I expected and more, but now reality has set in, and I am back to uncertainty. I am in the midst of waiting to hear from graduate school as well as a job, as I am sure many other seniors are in the same position as I am. I will always remember spring break as the beginning of the end, the end of my college years and the beginning of a new career.
As the saying goes, “When life hands you lemons, make some lemonade.”
Erin Gutzwiller is an Augusta Free Intern.
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