Goodbye Sophomore Year

Tomorrow is a turning point in history. Tomorrow the HWS Class of 2017 will earn their diplomas. Tomorrow the first Posse in HWS history will have graduated. Tomorrow I say goodbye Hobart and hello to home. The emotions in the atmosphere cover the whole spectrum and I feel it.

Of course I am proud for my seniors. Unlike my first year, this year I stepped outside of my bubble and I met dozens of people who have left an impression on my heart. Many of the people I met were seniors who inspired and motivated me to not only do more but love myself more. The class of 2017 has a special place in my heart and in the history of HWS. After 18 years of serving as president, tomorrow Mark D. Gearan will be stepping down from his role and transitioning to Harvard. Not a bad move though. HWS will be granting 4 honorary degrees tomorrow and one of them is going to Posse Founder Debbie Bial. This signals the impact that Posse has had on HWS, and this is one of the reasons that saying goodbye to my sophomore year is so hard. This year really was my year.

This was the year where I challenged myself to grow. I performed in Koshare, produced video essays, and I even went to NYC for the first time ever. The list of things I did this year would be too long, and I would probably start to cry and never finish this post. I just am so proud of myself for all I learned, the people I met, and the way I really made HWS my home this year. My second year is one I can be proud of. There are many times when I imagine what it would have been like spending my life at UCSB, but at this point I have learned not to say, "What if?" Instead I ask myself, "What will I do next?" I am officially a junior at Hobart and William Smith Colleges. I never thought I'd make it this far.

The past week has been stressful, but it has also helped me cement my undergraduate experience at HWS. I thank the friends I made this year. Y'all finally got me to say New York has decent parties. I thank the faculty that pushed me this year. Not only can I tell you why the curtains are more than just blue, but I can also make an iMovie film about them. To the staff that supported me, LOOK AT ME NOW! This summer I landed not 1 BUT 2 internships! One with FremantleMedia and the second with the Oscars. Let that sink in...THE OSCARS. Expect a lot of snaps and grams of me roaming around Hollywood and sipping on my Starbucks at premiers. 

I am wavering between an overwhelming joy and a complete break down because this is it. I am leaving for a long time. Please don't think I'm crying because I'll miss Geneva. I want to cry because this year marks my transition into independence. No longer will I see my Posse or mentor weekly. I will miss Orientation for the class of 2021. I won't get to perform in Koshare or see my favorite people everyday. I will be in England. But I know it's the best thing for me.

Sophomore year taught me just how much I didn't know about myself. I learned that I still had a lot to learn about who is William Samayoa. Being away from Geneva, NY will force me to explore, imagine, and create to a capacity I have never done yet.

The best is really yet to come. Sophomore year, William and friends of 2017 it was real. Here's to a great commencement and to my process of becoming. 

---