life lessons and gray (grey?) hair

I just found a gray hair. On my head. I think that means I'm getting wise.

And... then I plucked it out. I don't know what that means...

But since I'm suddenly feeling wise, I think now would be a good time to share some wisdom. You see, somewhere in the midst of flying from Peru back to the States, I graduated from college... officially graduated from college. And I never really thought about it because I was busy transitioning and getting a job and living life. But now that I think about it... oh man! I have graduated from college! I learned many many wonderful things in college... I learned about the intricate mathematical beauty of seashells and the psuedospheres of hyperbolic geometry... and I learned some life lessons. And I'm going to share them, because maybe the things that God taught me during college can also speak to you somehow.

I learned to love learning. Really. Learning is SO FUN!!! Late in my college experience, a fellow math-loving friend and I decided that we would make the most of learning and give each class a chance. We were taking a particular education class together that we had heard lots of bad things about and no good things about. But we decided that we would give this class a chance from the start and not be swayed by what we have heard other people say. We wanted to like it. And... we loved it! This class was awesome! Our classmates didn't think so, unfortunately. But we honestly really liked this class. We got so much more out of it than other people just because we did not come into class on the first day already knowing that we wouldn't like the class.

People will complain about everything. If you look for it, you can always find something to complain about in a class. My challenge to you is... love learning. Or whatever you're doing. It is a choice that you have to make. It won't necessarily happen automatically. You have to consciously choose to try to love it and have fun with it. And, I guarantee you, if you are in college and you decide that you are going to try to love learning... you are going to enjoy your classes and your education SO MUCH MORE.

I learned to be content being single. I was single throughout college. Not by choice, really... just because that's how life went. I was never looking for a relationship, and I never found one, and I am perfectly fine with that. My friends and acquaintances were more concerned about this, though. There were (many) times when friends, some well meaning and others nosy, would ask me how I'm doing with being single. The conversation would start something like this...

"Hannah, tell me... how are you, really? I mean, with, you know, being single and all..." their voice would get softer and softer as they went, as if they didn't want to utter the word "single" too loud... Maybe they thought that being single was some contagious disease that they could catch if they said the word out loud.

Sometimes, I completely ignored the question. But usually I answered politely and didn't say what I was thinking. What makes you think that my relationship status is your business? You're annoying me and if I wanted to talk to you about being single, then I would have brought it up already, but I didn't because I don't, so please leave now.

I know people were trying to be kind and thoughtful and most of them seemed to genuinely think that I must be experiencing serious inner turmoil due to not being in a relationship. The truth is... being single is cool. I have struggled with other things... like transitioning from college--there's a big one. But as far as being single goes, I'm enjoying the stage of life that I am in. If someday I am no longer single, I'll enjoy that, too. But I'm not living for that moment. My future is in God's very able hands and I trust His plan.

I learned to take a break. Sometimes, you need to put down the text book that you're reading, forget about the LONG list of assignments, projects, research papers, and readings that you have to complete, and go to Dairy Queen. Or the beach. Or apple picking. Or fishing. Or on a road trip to Washington D.C. I did all of these things during college, and they were all worth it. Less than a year after graduating, it isn't the studying and writing and reading that I remember when I think of college. It's the breaks that I took to do things with friends that I remember. Sometimes they were long breaks. Sometimes they were short breaks. But they always meant putting down the work and doing something else. Even if you work ALL THE TIME and NEVER TAKE BREAKS, you probably won't be able to finish EVERYTHING in college to the best of your ability. There is too much. You must prioritize. And taking breaks needs to be a high priority. The rest of your study time is much more productive when you take breaks, and life is richer and funner and awesomer. Breaks are worth it.

I learned to do silly things. Jump in frozen ponds. Play soccer in dorm hallways. Have shopping cart races. Run in puddles. Do silly things. It makes life funner.