Halfway point of college cause for reminiscence, looking forward

So I Was Thinking...

Today I came upon a small container of Play-Doh. Now, this phenomenon may have passed you by as a child, but for me, it was the epitome of what it meant to be youthful. As I opened the pink-lidded top, the familiar odor of the soft stuff made me smile.

Much like Play-Doh, JMU also holds many memories for me that can be triggered by something as simple as the sound of the marching band blowing through the campus.

I’ve officially been at JMU for five semesters. Being halfway done with my time here gives me an advantage; I’m neither too nostalgic — like most seniors — nor too blinded by novelty — as are most freshmen. I feel I can be completely honest with you in what I’m about to say: Your time here will fly by. When you are where I am now, you’re going to have a million memories, a hundred things you’ve learned about yourself, 15 dining locations that you either love or hate and, if you’re lucky, some really great friends.

For better or worse, you will have a major and hopefully you’ll be done with General Education. You’ll have your favorite spot on campus, you’ll have had the residence hall experience and possibly even had the off-campus experience. You’ll have joined some organizations and you’ll have hopefully shed some of that weight you gained freshman year. Maybe you’ll have a mentor. Perhaps you’ll have fallen in love, fallen out of love or still be waiting for love.

You’ll have learned the best times to visit Java City to avoid the crowds, that Thursdays aren’t complete without grilled cheese and that sometimes the best party is you, your pillow and your favorite movie. You’ll know all-nighters intimately, the same way you will know your student ID, mailbox combination and annually changing telephone number. Buildings will be constructed while you are here and pretty soon you’ll forget what the campus looked like without them. You’ll know that the JMU Fight Song plays from the cupola at 5 p.m. every day and that the smells are just part of the charm.

But what you might not know is that the real world is just outside your window, and it’s creeping up on you. Soon enough, you’re going to be shocked that you only have a few semesters left and you’ll be in the frustrating position of holding on and letting go. Knowing this looms ahead, I advise you to prepare now.

Take pictures so you can laugh at yourself and your popped collar one day. Do the all-nighter tomorrow if it means you get to hang out with your friends tonight. Get to know your professor beyond class — ask him or her to be your mentor. Tune in to WXJM to listen to your fellow students. Go to more than one game a season and catch a team besides football. Visit the Academic and Career Advising Center now because it’s never too early to start planning. Chat with the people who serve you every day — talk to Betty from D-hall and Virginia from Dukes. But, most importantly, take the time to smell the roses, or, in our case, the dog food. I’m telling you this now so that you still have a semester — or maybe seven — to get in all the good stuff. Because one day something — maybe the familiar sight of purple and gold — will trigger your memories of JMU. It’s up to you now to decide what they will be.

Ashley Lusk is a junior communication studies major.