By Chrissy Conley
@chrissy_conley
Unfulfilled. That’s the best way to describe it. It’s as if I watched an entire movie series and was forbidden to see the finale. Or if I endured the most thrilling roller coaster, but was forced to evacuate my seat before the final drop. I definitely wasn’t prepared for senior year to end like this. And I’m unfulfilled.
I cannot say that I am angry by any means, because the reasoning behind this decision is overtly justified and in fact the right thing to do to keep the people of this college safe and well from COVID-19. It’s just a heartbreakingly unfortunate circumstance for those of us who missed out on our final months at SC. Here’s why:
I hear from countless alumni that their favorite semester of their college career is senior year spring. Whenever the topic comes up, they excitedly explain the numerous memories ranging from long hilarious nights with friends in townhouses, to senior week tales, all the way to unmemorable “he said, she said” STI-YU-KA stories. They usually conclude those recounts with words that resemble the following, “Those were the good old days. I’d give anything to have that again.”
Although I spent way less time at Springfield College than the average senior being a transfer student, I instantly tied myself to its mission, the service, the extracurricular activities, Campus Recreation, East Campus, etc. The one thing though that I quickly came to learn that makes this place so special are the people. This includes the entire community, but more specifically, my friends. I’m talking about the people that I befriended my very first day on campus through T-Squad, to those who trickled through townhouse 3’s front door to say good-bye to my roommates and me on Friday, March 13 for the last time.
As I have taken a week and a half to collect my thoughts on this matter, I have come to the conclusion: my senior year was special. I knew two of my roommates before we moved in together, and I left with 7 great friends. Our house became a home. It consisted of binge watching the marvel movies and fangirling over Tony Stark, (a.k.a Iron Man, a.k.a. Robert Downey Jr.) collecting the most peculiar cereals to later tape the box on the “cereal wall” in our kitchen, playing heads-up for hours, wearing our most comfortable sweats on nights out, screaming and dancing like crazy to “No Air” by Jordan Sparks and Chris Brown, and so much more. For the first time in a long time, I had found a group of girls that were my kind of weird. It was pure bliss. And as quickly as it came, it was taken from us.
Maybe in a few short years, we’ll be jamming to old throwback music at each other’s graduate school graduation parties, or at each other’s weddings, or at our children’s 1st birthday celebrations. One thing’s for certain; I met my wild, weird, forever friends during senior year. And although I will not be able to experience the final drop of the thrilling roller coaster, or watch the final movie of the series, I get to walk away with the people who made every minute of senior year worth it. And in that sense, I am fulfilled.
Photo Courtesy of Chrissy Conley