While reading Freshman Year by Sarah Mai, I realized that the story within resonated very much with my own experiences. The summer before moving to college was filled with friend hangouts, family time, and work. Sarah’s portrayal of the average teenage mindset was very well represented and overall coincided with most people I know, including myself. The author implies that moving away can be a very difficult situation to most and really highlights the importance of spending as much time with those you care for before the change occurs. I connected with this text in the social aspect, leading me to believe that most experiences can be universal.

I spent every free second of my week hanging out with my best friends and making unforgettable memories before heading off to college. Similar to Sarah, I chose to spend more time with my friends and family than shopping for the items I needed when the time came. I realized after the fact that doing so stressed me out a million times more, I am now more cautious as to when I decide to plan things. Sarah appeared to spend more time with her friends than her family, whereas I spent most of my nights with my family. I managed my time so I could see my friends most days, as well as eat dinner and converse with my family every night. I am thankful I did so, college would be extremely difficult if I did not have my family by my side.

Page 14 of Freshman Year portrays Sarah working non-stop from June to July. I had an extremely similar experience with my summer job as a Shift Leader at Dairy Queen. Looking back, having this summer job taught me incredible time management skills which I brought with me to college. I appreciated the boss-like qualities I gained, I am now able to be more forward with people and ultimately engage in conversations in a way that benefits my talking skills. Sarah is drawn out to be more of a dedicated worker, which I compare very much with myself. Being a shift leader raised the stakes unquestionably high and I was given little to no slack. This skill is also extremely useful and upon reflection, helped me a tremendous amount when it came to doing my schoolwork.

Overall, Sarah and I had very similar experiences the summer before heading to college. Hanging out with friends and family while also managing to work full-time assisted greatly with my time-management and my friendliness. The summer before college was a very cannon event, setting up the stage for what my future would be like when I left. While reading the book, I made connections with Sarah’s dialogue as to her portrayed emotions. I only varied from her when it came to spending more time with my family rather than friends, which I feel was more important for me.

Works Cited:

Mai, S. (2024). Freshman Year. Little, Brown and Company N.Y. and Boston.