Two years ago, I got my admission letter from Notre Dame. It was one of the most exciting moments of my life. My whole family was crowded around my computer, and when the words “Welcome Home” appeared across my screen, everyone started screaming. My mom burst into tears. I didn’t grow up a Notre Dame fan, and really only applied on a whim.
The excitement hung around for a few days, throughout the holiday season. When I got to see family and friends and tell them of my admission, they were so excited for me. On Christmas morning, I unwrapped a green Notre Dame sweatshirt that my parents ordered the night I got in, clicking expedited shipping so it would arrive in time.
While I was so excited about getting into Notre Dame, I also became incredibly anxious. I knew no one there, and wasn’t even sure what I wanted to major in. How was I going to handle being so far from home, and how was I going to handle the cold? When I committed to Notre Dame in early February, I was still very nervous.
Two years later, I am still nervous. I’m nervous about my education law final, nervous about if I’m actually going to survive the snow again next semester, and nervous about Notre Dame football’s chances now that both Love and Price are headed to the NFL (but I nevertheless have hope!). But I’m still so excited. I’m excited for my education policy class next semester, excited for Southwest Salad lunches with my friends, and excited for more lake walks under the Dome. I’ve been so lucky to live out three amazing semesters at Notre Dame, and am so excited for five more.
So Class of 2030, bask in that excitement. Wear your Notre Dame sweatshirt. Watch all the day-in-the-life Tiktoks that come across your page. Obsessively plan your routes to class in order to get Starbucks every Monday morning. But also mellow in that nervousness. Know you’re not the only one out there already stressing about meeting new people, having a college level workload, and the amount of snow that collects on the ground. That’s all a normal feeling that will go away with time (attending the Rally eased lots of my anxieties), as nervousness comes with excitement.
Congratulations Class of 2030. Get ready for four more years of excitement!