WU Words: I originally came from Hiawatha Kansas…

I originally came from Hiawatha Kansas. A very small town, north of Topeka, so coming to Topeka has been quite the change. Everything that I have gone through has been much different than city life. However, I did not actually grow up in Hiawatha but out the outskirts of Hiawatha. Which, I became pretty fond of until I moved here. I grew up out in the middle of nowhere, helping my dad around the farm doing odds and end things. I moved down to Topeka to attend Washburn in the fall of 2015. The reason I chose Washburn is because it was a smaller college but I am still able to get my full BSN.

If there is one simply thing that has shaped my life was the challenge that my entire school went through my junior year of high school. There has not been anything that has changed my life more than this morning. One of the sophomore students had taken their own life. In a small town, suicide does not happen often and when it does, it is someone that you know very well; being that it is a small town. This has single handedly shaped me to change my views on life. You never every understand what someone is struggle with until it is too late. Looking back, there are things that everyone could have done differently, but no one knew that he was going through. Now I try and take life one day at a time and never take anything for granted.

One thing that I worry about or am not a fan of, is being away from my family. I know it is only an hour and a half away from my home town, but to me it feels like an eternity. My family is very close knit and being away from them has been the most challenging part of moving to college, as for anyone. I have a large family and a lot of nieces and one nephew. I just always worry about being away from them for too long and them think that I have forgot about them. On the other hand, my family is also the people who make me the happiest. I absolutely love being around my family when I am able to go home. Another thing that makes me happy is being around my best friends, because no matter how bad of a day I have had, my friends are the ones who get me through the day.

My worst experience at Washburn was definitely living in the dorms. I had a roommate who was very disrespectful and rude to me. That was an experience that I never wish to go through again in my life. My best experience was meeting all the new people that I had the opportunity of meeting, especially my best friend and new roommate. Campus is a beautiful place but there are so many people always one it, that you cannot enjoy the view but the rush of getting through to the next class, halts the piece of campus. I think a lot of Washburn kids are there to make memories and get a degree, which is exactly what I have been doing this year and will continue to do. The only thing I wish were different is that people were more open to change and understanding that everyone is different from the next person. Washburn seems to be a very closed minded campus and this needs to change.