Junie B. Jones, Harry Potter, Judy Moody, Ramona and Beezus. These are the characters that I am thanking at 22 years of age for letting me be a part of their adventures. I spent years of my childhood immersing myself in their worlds and shared the experience with anyone who cared to sit with me in my room and listen as I read aloud. This role was predominantly filled by my dad, trading off chapters and helping me understand big words.
I give credit to these fictional friends of mine because they sparked my love affair with reading and writing. They taught me about the importance of curiosity and creativity, tools that ultimately led me to academic success (STEM and I never had the healthiest relationship).
I have been writing for The Observer for the last three years, and what a joy it has been. I’ll admit, most of the time I forget that I’m writing for a newspaper and only remember an audience is reading my content when I pick up a copy somewhere across campus. Even then, it slips my mind until I get a text from my parents or a nudge in the hallway from a girl I'm not really that close to who comes up and tells me she liked my article. It’s been moments like these that have maintained my love for this column and have given me a reason to continue pursuing writing.
Being less than a month out from graduation, I still have no idea what life after May 17th will look like. It’s a bittersweet feeling: saying goodbye to something you loved so dearly and not knowing exactly what it is you are replacing it with. It makes me feel uneasy and scared, but just like the 18-year-old version of me who was petrified of college and found her way, I know I will too, this time with the lifelong support of a school that gave me everything and more.
There’s a lot of people I could thank and a lot of experiences I could reminisce on. I can thank the communication studies department for providing me with the education of a lifetime. I can thank my parents and siblings for being my number one supporters and always being there for me when I need them. But if there’s one last thing I want to say, one final word, I'm going to dedicate it to the sole thing I wanted most out of college.
To my friends (you know who you are):
Nothing I say can accurately describe the amount of love I have for all of you. I have never had friendships quite like ours and am going to miss the four-year-long sleepover like no other.
Good riddance, Saint Mary’s.
I had the time of my life.
Moira Quinn is a senior at Saint Mary's College studying communication. When she isn't writing for The Observer, she can be found with friends, watching a good romantic comedy or missing her basset hound. You can contact Moira at mquinn02@saintmarys.edu.
