You know what they say about high school being the best years of your life? Well, I beg to differ. I believe that college is truly the best time in one’s life. I am now in the second semester of my sophomore year here at FAU, and I’m about halfway finished with my college experience. It hasn’t been easy so far, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

I’m not trying to sound tacky or clichí© but what I have to say is true, and is intended to encourage you all. There’s nothing quite like going to your first Fighting Owl football game even if it is in the, how shall we say this, “rustic” Lockhart Stadium. There is nothing quite like tailgating and spending a whole day in the sun, or rain, as many of our home games have been.

I still remember the first football game I went to, back as a freshman. I could hardly contain myself when I was bombarded with drunk, good looking fraternity boys offering me warm cups of beer from their keg. I still remember doing the wave as our university band egged the Owls on. There are so many school functions I can remember going to as a freshman: from barbeques and foam parties to simple late night parties in the dorms.

Living away from home with my new community of fellow students was an exciting and new experience. Things this year are different of course, now that I am a little older. It’s still fun to party, but I find myself going out more off-campus to downtown Boca Raton or Ft. Lauderdale.

I think that as a student gets older, they now have more responsibilities and must put in more effort to maintain a decent GPA. I find myself now struggling a lot more with schoolwork and am constantly facing new deadlines. My classes are hard and I find that my cramming the night before the test (freshman style) antics don’t work anymore. I must read during the week for my classes now and find myself doing papers every night now. Sometimes I realize that I put a lot of effort in my work and still don’t receive a good grade on it. I won’t complain too much though. This was the life I chose: going to school and working part-time.

Many FAU students work long hours and still manage to go to school. I give a lot of credit to you all. It is not easy dealing with the rigorous work at a university, while maintaining a job to have spending money. However, when things get tough, and they do, I will just remember that I am fortunate enough to go to a beautiful school five minutes from the Atlantic Ocean, where the sun always seems to be shining. I’ll remember that I am making lifelong friends here and am learning more about people and hard times than I ever have in my life. So, to end my little note to my FAU community, just remember that we are a family working towards common goals and that these really are the best years of our lives.