By Faith Vander Voort
Leaving home and growing up is a necessary and beautiful (sometimes
painful) process of self-discovery and independence. In my particular
case, that process occurred, and is still occurring, 2,000 miles away
from home.
It’s natural to evolve as the people around you evolve, and I would
say that college has been a constant state of evolution for me. You
don’t notice the little changes as they come. You notice them all at
once in a rush of a moment.
That “all at once” moment occurred for me late last night. An old
friend from home payed me a visit, and I was instantly hurled back
into the world of Little Faith. I forgot what it was like to be known
for all of me – who I was in the past and who I am now.
My life moved on without the people that I left behind, but that
doesn’t make them less important to me. Old friends from home are the
ones that pushed me to leave, knowing it was best for me. They are
the ones that supported my crazy, extraordinary dreams. They are the
people that I call time and time again when crap hits the fan.
New friends are incredible agents of change, and I can honestly say
that a select few people here have made me a better human altogether.
They are my family now. We have gone through extreme highs and
devastating lows together.
Our relationships were formed out of genuine vulnerability.
Vulnerable. There is not better word to describe my state as I
watched my parents get in a cab and drive away from campus on August
28, 2014 at 9:35 pm.
Change is necessary. Change is painful. But most of all, change is
beautiful. As you change, friends change. “Make new friends, but
keep the old. One is silver and the other’s gold.” New friends are a
fresh start with new adventures and new memories. Old friends are
ornately intertwined into what makes you, you. One is silver, and the
other’s gold.
xoxo,
Faith