And so it begins

Those first few friends are leaving for college as we wring out the last few drops of summer.

It’s weird. Part of me is looking forward to college, taking that next step in my life, preparing myself for academic opportunities and the professional life beyond. But the other part of me sees college as just a hiatus between summers. I keep imagining us friends picking up where we left off every time we rejoin between school years.

I’m afraid the people I know will change too much, that I won’t make as good of friends in college as I’ve had up till now, and that I will make as good of friends in college.

Part of me wants to move forward. Part of me wants things to stay the way they are, with friendships at their strongest and fun at its most frequent. I’ll be honest, part of me doesn’t want to meet new people. But only part of me.

This transition is hard.