It's Just the Beginning

Back home in South Jersey, everything was slow and the days dragged on for years. The days would only go by fast if you had a full day of plans. The only good thing about home was the connections I made over the last thirteen years. Without my friends at home, life would be boring and mediocre in South Jersey. Ever since I graduated High School in 2015 and watched everyone leave for college, I felt like I was missing out on everything. I wasn't making as many friends as I wanted to in college since I was a commuter at my nearby college. There was rarely ever something exciting happening and I felt like there was so much more in life than what I was living.
Trapped was what I felt. Being under my parent's roof and not living on my own like everyone else. I mean a lot of people prefer staying home for their own reasons, but I wanted something new in my life and I was tired of living in the same town for thirteen years. During my time at home, I did live my life to the fullest, but not completely because I was still living with my parents. I often got in trouble because my parents always wanted me to be home, but I never wanted to.. I will never understand why they think it's a sin to want to watch the sunrise on the beach. I mean I understand that it's not good to stay out all night until after sunrise, but that's what I lived for. The warm summer nights spent with good company and good vibes were the highlights of my summer. Sometimes I would only get 2 hours of sleep for work, but Cuban Roast Wawa coffee always had my back.
Knowing how much stress I give to my parents (especially my mom), I knew it was only right to transfer to a college where I can truly experience life without two Asian parents nagging about everything I do. In my own opinion, I think I'm a good kid because I work hard in school and at my job. Work takes up most of my days in the summer, so whenever I'm off, I never spend the day at home doing nothing.  I never ask for money or let anyone badly influence me. But, just the fact that I'm never home, they see me as the devil's child.
Every day, I learn something new about myself. Even if it's something small like a new food or song I like. Before moving to Rutgers, I was worried about how I was going to get use to not having a car and not going to target every other day. But of course, I realized a car wasn't necessary since we have buses. And because everything is walk distance. Ever since I moved to New Brunswick, I made so many amazing connections and found my best friends in college. It's crazy how much we relate to each other and I'm glad we all live on the same floor. One of them is named Aileen and she's from Scotch Plains. The other one is Kaz short for Kazmuir and she's from Philadelphia, so she has to pay the out-of-state tuition, unfortunately. My time in college has been a life-changing experience. I learned so much about myself even when I've only been here for a short amount of time. The freedom I have here has allowed me to truly experience life and live it to the fullest. I've learned that if I put my mind to something, I can accomplish anything. Like when I had my last final exam the day before Christmas eve, I kept myself focused and studied my ass off despite being the only person left on campus. It really paid off and I was extremely happy that I got a 96 on it. It's an amazing feeling to be satisfied with life and to know that it's just the beginning.