Empowerment: Graduating from College Edition

Yesterday was a day I had dreaded for the past 5 years: I graduated from college. I love college and never ever wanted to leave (hence the victory lap) but there is something pretty cool about walking across that stage. I am proud that I picked and stuck with a major I liked, even though it may not offer the most lucrative positions. I am proud that I can finally say I have a B.A. I am also proud that I got really involved with campus life while I've been here. For me, college has been about personal growth and development. I was more interested in learning about who I was as a person than having the highest GPA or writing papers more than 8 hours before they're due. I also wanted to find amazing people who would be my friends for the rest of my life. I'm lucky in that I have accomplished all three: I have done well in school, grown a lot as a person and befriended really great people who I look forward to having in my life for years to come. College has helped me become the person I am, both in terms of character and in terms of interests. If it wasn't for college, I never would have gotten involved with feminism, sexuality or any of the things you see here. College has helped me become a confident, sassy, empowered woman. It has (and continues to) let me know that I still have a lot to learn. Just because I've graduated from college and now have a degree (well, technically, when they send it to me mid-summer) doesn't mean that I know everything, or even close. College has opened up worlds for me that I haven't yet had the time to explore. But I now have a curiosity sparked in me that I will carry with me throughout my life. Graduating from college may be a bit different than I pictured it years ago (I, for one, figured I would be done with all of my finals BEFORE graduation, but, alas, that is one of the issues with going to a big school) but it has been and empowering experience, nonetheless. I feel like I've come out the other side with much more than just a degree. I feel like I've found the base knowledge, passion and relationships from which to build the foundations of my independent adult life.