What I’ve Gone Through and How It’s Changed Me

When I came to college, I was trying to find my identity. I went to the freshmen orientation called Blueprints. I met a lot of people there and made friends. We ate ice cream, got to live with each other on campus and we played basketball. We went to a classroom where teachers told us what we can expect. Then I went home and came back to Trinity because I was in the Bridge program. Coming to this Bridge program, I met a lot of people and made a lot of friends. I learned a lot from them. Then the school year started and I had mixed emotions. I went to my classes and started to get used to them. I tried to know my professors and what to expect from them. I was double majoring in Exercise Science and Business Communications. I had a lot on my plate and I had to balance things.

Mid-way through the year, I met this Asian guy named Vince at lunch. We started talking and we became friends. He told me he was a rapper, I liked that because he was very creative. He would be freestyling like every day. I wanted to be a WWE wrestler so I started training for it and I also wanted to be a fitness trainer. I went through bullying in grammar school and high school. I was made fun of being for being skinny. That’s why I wanted to become a wrestler. I would watch WWE a lot and get motivated. They connected to me, with their passion for the game. I wanted to become a fitness trainer because I want to help people reach their goals. I wanted to get bigger as well. I was reading fitness magazines and articles, and getting fitness advice for people.

I was reading nutrition plans and watching my diet. I was making sure I was eating right and getting enough sleep. I was doing everything it took to attain this physique. The main thing that stuck with me was watching Youtube videos of fitness personalities. So I started seeing results. People were giving me respect that I never got in high school. It felt good getting that recognition from people. That pretty much capped off my sophomore year. I was headed into my junior year and continued my passion.

Then I took a break and then came back to it this year. I didn’t work out first semester because over the summer I found out that I have a passion for writing music. I found myself writing some songs between that time. I have written 23 songs and I was writing a song like every day. I always liked music but I never thought that I would be a rapper like my friend Vince. Since I am writing like every day, that shows that I am working really hard because I’m trying to be the best.

I have noticed that I have a lot of talents. The question is, “which one do I use?” My answer to that is that I am going to do all of them and maybe some others. I want to be a local rapper and a lot of people see that being a rapper is not a job and I know that. I have always had an interest in metal and rock, so I might infuse that with my raps, you never know. Whatever I do, I do it to the best of my ability. I am not going to let anyone stop me or tell me I can’t do it. That’s why I go hard in it. My grandpa always told me, “Whatever job you are in, you have to make sure that you are the best of the best.” I apply this to my life and I use it for motivation. These are words to live by and something to meditate on.

Photo credit: WWE

Homeschooler in the Real World

Emma Folts, a sophomore at Wheaton College, shares her experience about her transition into college and how homeschool has both helped and hindered her.
How has your homeschool experience benefitted you, especially in your transition into college?
I think the one thing that homeschooling did that was really helpful as I entered college was that it taught me time management. As a homeschooler I had the same freedom as a college student has to put things off during the day and go see a friend instead. Since I had that experience, I knew the cost of that.
Also, personal responsibility and accountability with assignments. I feel like a lot of the other students had more expectations for gentler grading and that the professor would give them retakes or extensions, but that wasn’t something that ever happened to me in school. That learning curve wasn’t added because I never had it the other way. I think another thing was that because I was homeschooled, I was familiar with the format of teaching and then studying on my own.
Did you see any issues with your transition socially?
I think that homeschooling had two ramifications for me socially. One was helpful, one was hurtful.
It was really helpful because as a homeschooler, I had spent a lot of time realizing and developing who I was as a person and learning to recognize people who were being themselves, and those were the people I sought out as friends. Friendship as a homeschooler takes a lot more investment. I knew I was choosier with my friends which made me a lot less anxious and a lot more content.
The only real negative impact of the social bit was that I was really used to getting to choose the time I got to spend with people. As a homeschooler I spent a lot of time with people, but that time was controlled by me. As a college student, I found that you can’t really control the time you spend with people and alone time is not really available. Learning to deal with that was a lot harder than anticipated.
Any last comments on homeschool and how it has affected your college experience?
I think homeschooling is really helpful, however it does take a slightly increased amount of advocacy with your peers when you’re entering into college. I think a lot of people come in with certain assumptions about homeschool, especially students. You’re going to get a lot of, ‘oh my gosh, you don’t seem like a homeschooled person!’ [You can’t] take that too personally and explain your experience so that friends can understand it’s an important piece of you, though it might not look like the homeschooling that they’ve seen.
My encouragement to anyone who is a homeschooler transitioning into college is to realize the benefit that you have having been homeschooled, and to realize that the bit of advocacy and explaining that you need to do with your peers is totally normal and that it’s not a big deal. Once they understand your experience, it’s not something I’ve experienced being looked down on for.