A wise woman once said, “It’s out with the old, in with the new, Goodbye clouds of Gray, hello skies of blue.”
That wise woman was none other than the fabulous (pun intended ) Sharpay Evans, played by the iconic Ashley Tisdale in the “High School Musical” film franchise. That quote has been running through my head a lot lately, maybe that’s because the last few days I’ve been thinking about how we can outgrow the things we once enjoyed. This season in life’s motto really is,“It’s out with the old, in with the new.”
Is this just the senioritis talking, or the fact that I’m feeling like I’m too old for certain stuff? For example, tailgating at the frat tents on game day. To be honest, I wasn’t ever a fan in the past, so it’s no surprise my favorite part about the tailgate experience is frolicking around, bumping into familiar faces and showing off the cute outfit I styled the night before.
Now, my friends and I still had fun amidst the poor music selection provided by each business or finance major who doubles as a DJ on the weekends. But we couldn’t help but feel like we were out of place. One of my friends proceeded to say, “I think we’ve outgrown this.” In conclusion, we went, we saw, we left and ended our tailgate experience at The Revelry. Let’s just say the bar was more our speed.
This is life, you move on.
My focus has truly shifted over the course of my college career. The things that felt so detrimental and “life-threatening” just aren’t anymore. I used to refuse to ask for extensions from professors because I thought it made me look like a failure, when in actuality, it just makes me human. A human who sometimes needs an extension. Nothing that we deem “deep” is ever really as deep as we think. So you need a moment to just sit, take in the stillness, lie in the grass and call out what objects the clouds look like to you. I think your five assignments and chores will still be there when your moment of peace is over.
I’m not promoting laziness or the acceptance of defeat, but I am promoting self-care and showing yourself, as well as the people around you, grace.
Outgrowing priorities is real. I used to prioritize due dates over my health. Yep, that’s right, I was a member of the no-sleep club, I was on a first-name basis with all-nighters. Today, I prioritize time management and sleep. You can’t function at your highest level if you never catch z’s.
Age and maturity have a lot to do with outgrowing things.
When considering my time at LSU, specifically freshman year, I already came to college uninterested in some opportunities my peers seemed eager to jump at. This is largely due to my gap year. Entering LSU at 19-years-old with a clear mindset, I was confident in my choices and could not be swayed into participating in anything I didn’t want to partake in.
I think a gap year before college should be a requirement for everyone. One of my professors noted that my transition from high school to college was smooth sailing compared to a lot of my peers.
While I entered college with a level of maturity after my gap year, I witnessed some counterparts lose themselves and eventually face hard truths and even harder consequences.
Most 18-20 somethings are on a journey, trying to figure out what it actually means to be an adult. When I turned 18, my new age was more about mindset rather than rebellion. I didn’t need to buy a 6-pack and cigarettes to make me feel like an adult. I didn’t need to permanently tattoo my body just to regret it later down the line or pierce a part of my body to feel alive, even though I did bleach my hair — that’s as far as I was willing to go. Actually, my form of rebellion was to avoid sticking to the status quo.
My pause before starting something entirely new was incredibly beneficial to me then and now, but I’m ready for the next chapter. That’s what life is, new chapters.
Take what you’ve outgrown or who you’ve outgrown and leave them in the chapter where they once fit. Take what still works from that same moment in your life and let it stay with you until one day you wake up and realize you’ve outgrown that, too.
It hasn’t been lost on me that while some of my friends have indeed evolved, other school chums are still trying to figure out what to do about their situationships, how to navigate friendship drama and the importance of knowing their drinking limits. You could tell these factors are weighing them down and even stifling their growth. And that’s okay, everyone is on their own trajectory in life.
As we navigate through this beautiful thing called life (thank you, Prince), there’s so much that awaits you.
Instead of fearing the future and all of the unknown that comes with it, look forward to it all. New friendships, relationships, career opportunities, travel experiences, etc.
While college is said to be “the best four years of your life,” don’t let the fun and/or messiness you’re currently experiencing keep you at a standstill.
Outgrowing spaces is a joy, not a burden.
Ava Francis is a 22-year-old journalism major from New Orleans.
