Dear Freshmen Self

Freshmen fifteen is the least of your worries

The sky will be clear and blue one day

And suddenly turn gray with snow flurries

That’s how it is here in flagstaff

With mood swings of a giraffe

Because it can reach up high to a sunny sixty degrees

And drop down low to the single digits

Like the mega drop at the fair

And sometimes the slight breeze runs through your hair

Pushing and shoving and leaving you looking like a bear.

 

You’ll bomb the first exam

Nuclear energy crumbling your GPA

You’ll want to jump out of plane like a kamikaze pilot,

You think you’ll have to work at Denny’s serving grand slams

But just know that one bad grade isn’t your end

Your end is the day you give up

Up is the only way to go

Go and do your best, my friend

 

AP classes did not prepare you for this

It’s a rollercoaster with an unexpected twist

You think you know

And you overflow with confidence

But your test scores come back

A slap in the face

In high school you didn’t study

But now that’s not the case

Unless you want your night to be cruddy

Don’t procrastinate

 

Hold on to your folks

When they leave they won’t come back

Sixteen weeks without your father’s jokes

Four months without your mother’s homemade dinners

You might like the idea of ramen for a snack

Pizza in your midnight slippers

But in the end it differs

There is no place like home

 

Boys will come and go

Girls will walk all over you

The reason you’re here is not for the show

You’ve got a degree that’s due

Focus on your character and play the part

College is a stage with no applause

Don’t lose motivation nor heart

Say your prayers, eat your applesauce

Hold on to your dreams, spread your wings

And never forget you will do great things

Sincerely,

Me, You, and I