Dear Junior

Dolores Hans
MSMU class of 2025

(6/2024) This year has been one of the hardest and simultaneously most joyful of my life. The low parts of this year hit like a ton of bricks, but the joy I found, my surrounding friends, and the person I’ve become made it worth it. The beginning of junior year feels like you are losing something good and gaining something challenging at the same time. It’s a heavy burden to carry, to be losing the comfort of your past and be handed more responsibility and big questions. But I have faith in you.

I had no expectations for my junior year of college, other than what I had seen in one of my favorite shows, "Gilmore Girls," which retrospectively, was a lot like mine. Main character Rory Gilmore is given an opportunity for a summer internship in a newspaper company. As the summer ends, she is told by someone above her that she doesn’t have what it takes to make it in this career. Because of this, she becomes discouraged and even though she has known her entire life that she wanted to be a journalist, after one person puts her down, she begins to question everything. She decides to take some time off from school and her first semester of her junior year is spent losing sight of who she is and what she wants. It’s not until a friend of hers really asks her what she is doing and why she is doing it, and reminds her that she is capable, that she decides it’s time to get back to school and continue to pursue the career she loves.

The summer before my junior year, I was stressed about finances, roommates, feeling lonely, not knowing if I was on the right path, and dreading the semester to come. Through my tears one night, my dad told me I didn’t have to go back, and I heavily considered taking time off. Although I ended up going to school anyway, it was not easy. I started off with a lot of hope, then lost some. I felt lonely, with my good friend and my boyfriend both studying abroad, 3,000 miles away with a five-hour time difference. But I made lots of friends too. We were preparing for an internship in my education classes, and it was very hard to see the fruit of what I was learning. I felt unsure.

Spring semester I began my teaching internship, and I had someone tell me that I didn’t have what it takes. I was so discouraged I began to question again if I was on the right path. Like Rory Gilmore, I have always known I wanted to be a teacher. I have been in teaching roles since middle school. I have been caring for kids since I was a kid myself. This is my path. But it didn’t take much for it to all come crumbling into a disorganized and very sad mess of a plan. I had to find my courage.

This year, you will discover what it means to take courage. When you are facing defeat, you are beaten down and discouraged, hold your ground. Remember why you are doing what you are doing. Remind yourself that you are capable.

In the end, you will learn what is most important. I may have struggled with my future, but I knew who my friends were. In the present moment, everything was just as it should be. I went on adventures, developed healthy habits, made friendships stronger, practiced patience and graciousness, and fell in love with the present moment. Enjoy today. Be courageous.

In your junior year, you’ll feel the pressure. You’ll be looking back on what your life once was, grieving for the life you used to know, and you’ll be looking ahead at what’s to come, frightened of the uncertainty. But through your grief of your past, you’ll find a secure foundation. And through your fear of the future, you’ll find passion.

My hope for you is that you will bounce back. When you take hits and go through hard times, you’ll learn lessons and emerge stronger than ever. In your life, hold onto goodness and the purist moments, and let go of that feeling of dread. There is nothing coming your way that you can’t survive. There is nothing you’ll go through that will be solved by quitting or losing yourself. You can do this. You can persevere.

As this year comes to its end and I contemplate what my senior year may be like, I plan to keep the strength I developed from junior year and carry it over into my last year at the Mount. I know now more than ever that my friends and family are my rock. They are the ones who know me best and will help me stay on my path. I also plan to devote more time to prayer. A lot of the hopelessness and loss I felt this past year was because my faith wavered as I tried to take control of my future rather than hand it to God. If I stay close to Him, I am in good hands. Remember, God won’t give you any challenge or any cross that you can’t bear. When you come to face something difficult, ask for the grace to overcome it and God will be there by your side.

My last bit of advice to you: make this time count. Don’t waste your energy and time on meaningless things like overdrinking and drama. When you look back at your junior year, as I am now looking back on mine, I won’t remember the things that caused me pain or the things I thought brought me joy but truly didn’t; I’ll remember all the good that occurred instead, but I will never get that time back. Don’t spend what little time you have to be taking opportunities for your future or to be developing relationships or to be improving yourself on the meaningless and fruitless. Take advantage of the chances given to you and aim to be great. You can do it!