From The Future: Dear First-Year Mary...
7/15/2019 9:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse, Student Athlete, Intellectual Development
Dear First-Year Mary,
This might be a little confusing, but it is senior year Mary… and no this is not like the Office episode when Dwight receives faxes from the future. Anyway, I am writing to ensure you that becoming a Mountain Hawk was one of the best decisions that you will ever make – details to come! I know you are scared of leaving the small and loving town you grew up in, but Lehigh will become your new home and you'll be just as scared to leave here in four short years. Don't believe me? Well let me give you a little glimpse into the next few years…
Lehigh will teach you within the first week of living there that you do not know everything. Be curious, ask questions, and listen to those with different experiences and opinions. Growing up in a small town did not expose you to people who are extremely different than you, but Lehigh will if you let it. Your ability to listen to others is one of your strengths, so use it to hear from new people and learn about them. You'll be shocked at all of the new things you will learn and how passionate you become about a few of them.
Be open and ready for change because it's coming! Change has always been something that you have struggled with, and I can tell you that it is coming. Playing on the lacrosse team will teach you to handle things as they come with a smile and readiness to work hard. You'll need to adjust to many new roles throughout your career, so when these changes come, be ready to learn a lot and work hard to fulfill them for your team. See each of these changes as an opportunity to grow and connect with more of your teammates. These experiences will give you a new-found appreciation for the game and being on the Lehigh Women's Lacrosse team.
One thing you learn time and time again is that failure happens every day and each one is an opportunity to get better. When you fail at Lehigh, you are able to find others who can help you succeed the next time. Despite you thinking now that failing in anyway is catastrophic, you will soon see that it is not. Your very first college exam will be your first "major" failure at Lehigh but from it, you will learn what it means to truly study, and surprisingly you learn that you LOVE learning about that particular field. You'll also fall short of the expectations you have set for yourself athletically during your freshman year. From that, you'll see that you need to work harder than you did in the past and listen to your Dad when he tells you, "this is what it takes to be great."
The people you meet at Lehigh are some of the most supportive and caring you have ever met. You'll be able to find a group of friends that will become your family. They're a special group; you'll often find yourself unbelievably proud and in awe of everything they do. This new family is quite amazing – let me tell you! But they are also crazy in the best possible way. Each of them will teach you something about yourself that you would not have been able to discover without them. Most of all, as a group, they teach you not to be afraid of being yourself. Luckily for you, a lot of them will be there from the beginning of your freshman year and others will join your family as the years go on. I can't stress enough how much these people will mean to you over the next four years, so when you find them, make sure you appreciate each moment you have with them.
To sum it up for you: this experience is better than you could have ever imagined it would be.
Do you believe that you're going to fall in love with this place yet? I hope so… because if I could go back and be freshman year Mary again, I'd go in a second! I encourage you to have confidence in yourself as you embark on this journey. You're going to do great, I promise!
Go get 'em Mel!
Love,
An older and wiser Mary
This might be a little confusing, but it is senior year Mary… and no this is not like the Office episode when Dwight receives faxes from the future. Anyway, I am writing to ensure you that becoming a Mountain Hawk was one of the best decisions that you will ever make – details to come! I know you are scared of leaving the small and loving town you grew up in, but Lehigh will become your new home and you'll be just as scared to leave here in four short years. Don't believe me? Well let me give you a little glimpse into the next few years…
Lehigh will teach you within the first week of living there that you do not know everything. Be curious, ask questions, and listen to those with different experiences and opinions. Growing up in a small town did not expose you to people who are extremely different than you, but Lehigh will if you let it. Your ability to listen to others is one of your strengths, so use it to hear from new people and learn about them. You'll be shocked at all of the new things you will learn and how passionate you become about a few of them.
Be open and ready for change because it's coming! Change has always been something that you have struggled with, and I can tell you that it is coming. Playing on the lacrosse team will teach you to handle things as they come with a smile and readiness to work hard. You'll need to adjust to many new roles throughout your career, so when these changes come, be ready to learn a lot and work hard to fulfill them for your team. See each of these changes as an opportunity to grow and connect with more of your teammates. These experiences will give you a new-found appreciation for the game and being on the Lehigh Women's Lacrosse team.
One thing you learn time and time again is that failure happens every day and each one is an opportunity to get better. When you fail at Lehigh, you are able to find others who can help you succeed the next time. Despite you thinking now that failing in anyway is catastrophic, you will soon see that it is not. Your very first college exam will be your first "major" failure at Lehigh but from it, you will learn what it means to truly study, and surprisingly you learn that you LOVE learning about that particular field. You'll also fall short of the expectations you have set for yourself athletically during your freshman year. From that, you'll see that you need to work harder than you did in the past and listen to your Dad when he tells you, "this is what it takes to be great."
The people you meet at Lehigh are some of the most supportive and caring you have ever met. You'll be able to find a group of friends that will become your family. They're a special group; you'll often find yourself unbelievably proud and in awe of everything they do. This new family is quite amazing – let me tell you! But they are also crazy in the best possible way. Each of them will teach you something about yourself that you would not have been able to discover without them. Most of all, as a group, they teach you not to be afraid of being yourself. Luckily for you, a lot of them will be there from the beginning of your freshman year and others will join your family as the years go on. I can't stress enough how much these people will mean to you over the next four years, so when you find them, make sure you appreciate each moment you have with them.
To sum it up for you: this experience is better than you could have ever imagined it would be.
Do you believe that you're going to fall in love with this place yet? I hope so… because if I could go back and be freshman year Mary again, I'd go in a second! I encourage you to have confidence in yourself as you embark on this journey. You're going to do great, I promise!
Go get 'em Mel!
Love,
An older and wiser Mary
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