They say money can’t buy happiness. However, investing in relationships and experiences can, and that is exactly what I tried to do during my time at Bradley.
Carpe diem, or “seize the day,” became my personal motto, and adopting this attitude helped me create some of my best memories over the past four years.
Carpe diem shaped me from an awkward, introverted freshman into an outgoing, optimistic upperclassman. I became a resident adviser and staffer for The Scout, studied abroad, was interviewed for the front page of a local newspaper and managed to achieve Summa Cum Laude.
Along the way, I learned self-confidence and made hundreds of interpersonal relationships. I became the person that freshman Sophia only dreamed of.
I can’t choose a favorite memory to define my time at college. Was it the time I almost touched Dan Smith of Bastille at the Spring concert freshman year? Teaching American customs to my host family and classmates in Ireland? Receiving a surprise birthday party in the middle of summer in the Harper game room?
Or it was swinging on the swings at Laura Bradley Park at 2 a.m.? Eating a horseshoe for the first time? Setting the record for the fastest reaction time at the Riverfront Museum? Stepping on a snapping turtle while hiking at Matthiessen? Having a professor chuck a K-Cup at me during class? Getting the flu on Valentine’s Day and getting pampered by friends allweekend?
Maybe it was when I was taking late-night walks to hide rubber ducks from the campus police? Spending hours at Jimmy’s Bar with friends and the Jimmy’s crew? Baking treats at midnight for the third-shift staff at Macmillan and BUPD? How does one choose a favorite when each and every one–no matter how mundane–is a treasured memory?
Bradley was more than a school. It was a home. My friends quickly became family. Even if my Bradley family is now far away, the memories they helped form will always be with me.
To my ResLife colleagues, the third-shift staff at dispatch and BUPD, The Scout team, my department faculty and peers and Joanne the mail lady, thank you for being a part of my college story and giving me the best years of my life.
My parting advice to anyone reading: Carpe diem.
Hi Sophia!
So glad to have met you. Thank you for the smiles at Dispatch and the sweet treats!
May your future be as bright as your kindness and joy for the entire Bradley University community and family.