We are halfway! Halfway between here and there. Halfway between, “Wow, I cannot wait to further develop myself in my final year at Lawrence,” and, “Oh my god, who am I, how do I live in a community larger than one square mile?” For those of us graduating in a few months, we will most likely be headed into uncharted territory, and that can be a scary thing. Don’t worry! Academic skill-sets aside, it is important to acknowledge the real-world skills we have attained in our time as students.
For starters, we are now bona fide experts at navigating the complexities of the postal service. While some folks are forced to keep track of a PO Box key or time the arrival of a package with their being at home, we can access our always-forgotten mailbox combination online and receive email reminders to pick up packages at our convenience. We will have no trouble at all transitioning to the long waits and troublesome customer service of the real world.
Furthermore, we have developed the skills to have a place of our own, including the culinary know-how to create satisfying meals. Our potential is such that we are even granted the ability to make our own omelets during morning brunch. I don’t know about you, but dousing my eggs with cooking oil or leaving a pan for the next person with a fine layer of char gives me unabashed hope for my future success.
This is all without mentioning our knack for navigating busy city life. In other places, the complex network of public transportation, crowded streets and consumer choice lead to stressful and time-consuming errands. However, here at Lawrence, it is a truly exciting time when, after putting off the essentials for as long as humanly possible, we begrudgingly make the cumbersome walk down the street to buy our necessities at Walgreens.
Come June, we’ll be more than ready for the real world.