Expectations.

This is perfect: sipping on a steaming cup of green tea, sportin’ the comfiest pajama pants on the planet, blogging with Marley & Me playing silently in the background, and the rain falling outside my window. What could be better?

I’ve been thinking, and I think that it’s pretty neat to finally find myself in that stage of life where the number one question I’m asked at least twice a day is, “What are you doing in the fall?” I seriously thought this day would never come, because it always seemed to good to be true. Like time was always at a stand-still. It was never me who got asked that question, it was everyone else but me! It was my cousins, my sisters, my brother, and my friends. But now, it’s me! It’s my time. And I always reply with, “I’m going to University in BC, and I am so excited.”

I can't think of a more perfect place to begin the rest of my independent and responsibility-filled life. I mean, the Rocky mountains are practically in my backyard, the ocean is just down the road, the big city is 45 minutes away (when the traffic cooperates), the winters are MILD, and most of all, I have friends and family who are just a phone call away from an invitation to social-fulfillment.

I am nothing short of THRILLED to be starting University in a little over two weeks. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those people who only sees secondary education as another walk in the park, sleep during classes by day, and partying by night. I'm a very optimistic person, ask anyone, but…by preparing myself with a slightly negative outlook on this upcoming experience, I’ll know exactly what I’m getting myself into. Therefore, I'm forcing myself to expect the worst. I'm expecting to feel homesick, lonely, stressed, and like I'm literally stuck under a rainy cloud. I’m expecting to lose my tan, and to seriously be lacking in my Vitamin D count. I'm expecting to feel lost, to wonder what I'm actually doing here, and to be second-guessing my dreams and goals in life. I'm expecting to lose friends, and maybe even have my heart broken. I'm expecting sleepless nights, and to feel disappointed when I don't find any messages from my friends back home. I’m expecting to make some pretty bad decisions once in awhile. I'm expecting that I'm actually going to miss my parents, no matter how much I say I won't. I’m expecting to land a few bad grades here and there. And I'm expecting to miss my solitude, my morning cups of green tea and my daily romantic comedy movie dosage. I’m expecting to be missing some people so bad that it’ll hurt.

Everything I just wrote is true, and I'm not going to lie when I say that this next chapter in my life is extremely scary and without a doubt, nerve-wracking. But despite all of these fears, I have so many good, no…make that, GREAT feelings about going to university; I know that I'm going to have the best roommate ever. I know that my social-life will be outta this world, and maybe even too out of this world. I know that I'm going to write some pretty great essays. I know I'm going to thrive in the big city. I know that I'm finally going to become addicted to working out…(hopefully? maybe?). I know I'm gonna take some really good pictures, with a really good camera. I know that I'm going to meet some pretty fantastic and memorable people. I know that I’m going to get all of my assignments done on time. I know that I’m going to grow tremendously in my faith. I know I will finally be able to prove my point that High School is so very overrated. I know that I’m going to improve my writing skills more than I ever thought possible. I know that I’m going to catch someone’s eye, and maybe they’ll even catch mine. I know that I’ll learn to do my own laundry…one day. I know that the word “Christmas Break” will never sound so good. I know that I’m going to gain some serious life experience points. I know that my hair is going to grow to incredible lengths. I know that I’ll be one step closer to reaching my ultimate goal in life. I know that finding a letter or postcard in my mailbox will bring a huge smile to my face. I know that I’ll finally be able to move on from the few of the toughest months of my life. And I know that I’m going to make the best memories, I just know it.

All of these wonderful, beautiful, and magical hopes overrule every shoddy expectation I’ve ever had. This leaves me feeling confident in knowing that whichever mishap decides to throw a punch at me, I’ll be ready for it, and I’ll always know that things will turn around and get better.