I haven’t really been on campus that frequently this semester (global pandemic and all), but recently I stopped into the library in between classes to grab a coffee from CC’s and it hit me: I’m going to miss the University.
Call it senior sentimentality or social deprivation, but in that moment, standing in the middle of the first floor waiting for my next dose of caffeine, I actually teared up a little.
A lot of my columns here tend to center around life at the University, but after being so physically removed from the community on campus, the words started to feel like formulaic phrases rather than words describing reality.
Yet watching those students living their lives — cramming for midterms, chugging iced coffees in hopes it’ll make up for the all-nighters they just pulled, napping in a dimly-lit corner despite it being noon on a Wednesday —reminded me of all the amazing memories I have on campus and at LSU in general.
All the volleyball games and trips to Cane’s, the study sessions before finals where all of my friends and I would sit at one tiny table and split snacks and hope we didn’t fail, meeting some of my best friends freshman year (shout out to Lillian’s HNRS 2000 — y’all are real ones!) and watching old friends grow and blossom into the people they are today.
I know a lot of us seniors feel like we’ve been deprived of a “real senior year,” and maybe we have been, but I will always be grateful for the years I had here at the University.
No matter how much I disagree with how certain events and situations were handled, or how annoyed and frustrated I became over the years, I will never forget the people I’ve met, the memories I’ve made or the times I’ve had.
When I made the decision four years ago to attend Louisiana State University, I was afraid I would regret it — regret not going farther from home, regret not pushing myself out of my comfort zone, regret not choosing the “what if” — but now I can confidently say that I don’t regret any of it.
After getting my coffee and reliving the past four years, I left for my next class, wondering when the first time I’d set foot in that CC’s had been. Freshman year? During SPIN? It wasn’t until I was back home, safely tucked away in my room and typing out this article that I finally remembered.
The first time I went to the CC’s in the LSU Library was in high school when my sister and I went to pick up a friend there. I remember being so nervous: hoping no one could tell I didn’t belong, thinking how big everything seemed and how impossible it would be to ever figure out how to get around campus.
Looking back on it now, it’s laughable… but it’s also a great analogy for my college journey. I couldn’t have imagined myself more at home somewhere than I am strolling through the Quad or huffing and puffing up the stairs in Hodges to get to class, yet here I am, taking it for granted every single day.
To my fellow seniors, I know we all have mental countdowns to graduation, but try to remember the good times, too. Once we’re gone, I guarantee we’ll miss these “good ole days.”
To the rest of the LSU community, thank you for making my experience what it was, and please never take for granted the amazing group of people you’re surrounded by.
Marie Plunkett is a 21-year-old classical studies senior from New Orleans.