- My family often told me that I would find my life-long friends during my first year at college.
- As a
Yale freshman , I found that idea ridiculous, but I still felt pressure in my first year.
Thankfully, I found Yale students who laughed at this idea. While some people tried to find their
Whether it's true or not, however, that pressure weighed heavily on me throughout my freshman year. I just don't think it's realistic.
Yale is a very
I felt pressure to make immediate, lifelong connections
While I and many people on campus relentlessly satirized and made fun of the concept, it was still omnipresent. It was hard to escape the appearance that other people have found their core group for life.At Yale, little weekend excursions are common. I often heard that another group of first years went on a trip to New York City together; it rang in my southern ears as a big deal — even though it just takes a free Sunday, $34, and a few hours on the Metro North. Still, it felt like people were connecting in ways I wasn't.
It's also hard to ignore the role social media plays in creating the impression that everyone has more and better
But on the other hand, I also didn't want to force the connections in my first year. I told myself that
Good friendships take time to find and grow
I've probably met over 100 people I could see as potential lifelong friends. Between the people I've made in my residential college, improv group, moot court team, political union, and just wandering around campus, I've probably met my best friends already. But I can't be sure.We have a long road ahead. A lot could happen, so I don't want to rush anything. Friendships take time to nurture and grow.
While I felt disappointed with myself because I haven't made many truly soul-to-soul deep connections with many people, I accept that takes serious time. Even for people I've been close with for years, our relationships took a long time to develop. Now should be no different, and I must remind myself of that.
I still haven't taken that friend group trip to New York yet, and that's fine. I'll get to it eventually.