Plan, jump, push, freefall. Thrill.

Bungee jumping is a real thrill...but it’s also really scary! I think university and bungee jumping have a lot in common...I'll attempt to explain this to you:

Before going to university you feel anxious and scared, but also very excited. You can't wait for the day to come where you pack your bags and gain the freedom you‘ve wanted since you started high school. But with this excitement also comes anxiety. What degree will you do? Will you be able to handle the work load? How much will it all cost? Will you be okay away from home? Will you keep in touch with your friends? These are all totally normal feelings. University is a big step. This excitement and nervousness is like the days before you plan to go bungee jumping. You ask yourself if you will be able to go through with it and if you will be okay afterwards. After a bit of self convincing, or a push from someone else, you take the leap...like making the decision to go to university.

At first you feel amazing. You feel the freedom and excitement bubbling out of you. You find it hard to believe that you are finally here. After waiting 5 years to finish school so you can go to university, the day has arrived! You get thrown into a world unknown to you. You can’t wait to meet new people and experience new things...life is about to start. This is like the trip from the bungee jumping platform to just before the bungee cord is pulled taut. It is a feeling of weightlessness that you have never experienced before.

Before you reach the bottom of your jump for the first time you start to stress slightly: will the cord hold you? Is it going to be okay? This is like the first few weeks/months of university. You suddenly get the work piled on, you have to choose your subjects, you miss home, and every part of your life has changed. But soon these feelings will subside. You realise that the cord isn’t going to break. Everything will work out ok and so you start to enjoy the ride. This is where real university life starts.

Dear eager past version of me

Dear eager past version of me

I know how excited you are to finally be going to university: I was too! The feeling of gaining your freedom is amazing – there is nothing like it. Before you leave home I want you to eat as much of mom’s food as you can. Spend time with our sister and everyone else in our family, because you don’t realise how much you are going to miss them.

This year is going to be filled with new people and experiences; I can’t even remember them all! But I know you are a strong-willed person and won’t compromise yourself for anyone, you will be fine.

There is one thing I want to warn you about though: please get enough sleep! The many assignments, practicals, tests and tutorials (a weekly gathering of a smaller group of people from your lecture. You have an assignment each week for each subject- a bummer I know, but vitally important) will take time. I know you will be tempted to leave these tedious tasks until an hour before bed time, but don’t! It’s not worth it. Yes, the assignments will get done in time, but the next day you will be really tired. Your Monday early morning lecture will become your nap time and your alarm will magically go off some mornings without waking you up.

This is not a good thing.

Missing lectures because you are tired is no excuse. I want to see you going to bed at a decent hour every night and not leaving your assignments until the last minute. I have found through my experience this year that doing your work when you get it is the best way to go. You might feel like going out instead, but take it from me as I know you best of all: it’s not worth the sleep loss.

Be good!
Love Me

A letter to my younger self

Dear Kaz

I’m writing to you as your future self, as the girl you are going to evolve into next year. You are about to begin the most exciting journey of your life, and it all starts on the road to independence. You have always been wise beyond your years and have yearned for the opportunity to spread your wings and fly to your highest aspirations, but were warned by your parents that it’s a “big bad world out there that you aren’t quite ready for”. Well guess what? that “big bad world” is not all bad and comes with all sorts of perks and pleasures, but maybe Mom and Dad were right to assume that it might initially come as a shock, as you have had many “firsts” this year and some tough and stressful experiences as well, and that is why I am writing to you- in an attempt to prepare you for what is to come. This year has definitely been a rollercoaster ride, so hop on but don’t forget to fasten that safety belt!

You never did waste any time here and you proved that when you accidently ended up landing a job as the new, hot DJ in town- in your very first week of Varsity! Wow! Awesome! You always wanted fame and there was your stage! In that same week you succeeded in dying all your white clothes pink in the wash, getting a reputation as a ditsy blonde, found out that people actually can run out of money, and met some of the greatest people and friends this planet has to offer.

Sadly the DJ job only lasted for 3 months as you soon realised that you were here for a degree and that playing “the golden oldies” at 3am in the morning on a weekday to drunken disorderly disco dancers was not exactly educational. But still, the experience was fun while it lasted, and so was your first year of freedom.

Keep well and good luck
LOVE ME (a.k.a "you" ;) )

Letters to the past...

We decided that a good way to give you a glimpse into how we have changed and to give you some advice for next year would be to write a letter to our former selves (before we got to university) so here it goes....hope they help!