"A wise man changes his mind, a fool never will."

Change is inevitable. I have already faced gross amounts of change since being at school. Change can either make or break you. Often times we let change grab a hold of us and we let it take over our lives. Most people I know see change as a bad thing, we are comfortable in our ways so why change what's already working perfectly? Recently, I've realized that change can be good. If we embrace change with open arms we will not only adapt to this change easier, we will also learn and grow from this. This whole "last year, best year" thing is really making me learn to deal with this concept of confronting change with open arms. Every day I walk around campus, sit in class, talk to friends, go to meetings, and I find something in my daily motions that has changed. Last Tuesday, I experienced an abundance of change during my first SEAL meeting of the semester, and every last second of that change terrified me. I was terrified but I was ready because while it meant the beginning of my end in SEAL, it also meant I'm soon moving on to bigger things in life. Everyday I realize how my physical proximity to my friends has changed as I moved into off campus housing. Around campus the senior class is now experiencing this weird thing where we are the oldest class on campus now.  I have faced changes in both my class load and work load this year. It also feels as if I have faced some sort of change in just about all aspects of my life these past two weeks. This weekend was a huge change for me as I stayed in Farmville as opposed to driving to Richmond like I did every weekend last year, and this was the hardest change I have faced yet. Life is changing all around me, and only I can keep it from bringing me down.
Senior year is a transition. It is when we begin to prepare ourselves for our lives after college. We are no longer the freshman trying to decide our major, we are the seniors trying to determine our life. (Which is rather terrifying for someone who has no clue where they are going.) We are no longer the ones getting lost on campus, we are the individuals preparing for something far bigger than Longwood's campus. So as I go into this year with an open heart and an open mind to all things coming my way, I too open my heart, arms, and mind to the change that is coming. While it may be terrifying, and in some cases heart breaking change, in the end it will be for the better. Ya know, I really am going to make this the best year I can because why not go out with a bang?