Karalyn Grimes ’16

Goodbye, Oberlin Blogs. I'll miss you.

For all of you high school seniors at home filling out your college applications right now, this is a blog post for you. It's written specifically to myself, but extrapolate my own advice into your own experiences.

I spent the first week of November in Boston, touring Harvard Divinity School as a Diversity & Explorations program participant, and attending the school's first Black Religion, Spirituality, & Culture Conference. But wait, this is the blog platform I write for Oberlin, where does Harvard come in? This is the story about how Oberlin got me to Harvard. (Maybe.)

Too much beauty occurred this summer to capture it all in words, so instead I would like to share some of my favorite photos of my favorite moments.

Half wish list, half confessional, here are spectacular things that could be done here that I've never gotten around to.

When this semester ended I knew I wanted to celebrate with a camping trip. My friend Rewa and took off to my brother's favorite spot, Nordhouse Dunes on the shores of Lake Michigan.

Being sick in college is no fun. It's pretty lonely and there's no parental figure to wait on you hand and foot. But I promise, given a few tricks and a really good friend or two, you'll be better in no time. Or just in time for the cool Cat show on Friday.

It's been awhile since I walked you through a day or a week in the life. So let's do that! This is a particularly bustling one as the first weeks back are full of things to do, people to see, and the dreaded Add/Drop.

I've spent the last three weeks in California traveling down the coast and then back up again. My project has been creating a chapbook of poetry. Suffice it to say, this has been the most incredible Winter Term.

Finals are really tough. This is how I got through them.

Still on the study abroad blog flow, breaking it down with an essential list of all the reasons why you should spread your wings and fly away, aka study away during college.

So, you ask, what is this 'sacred environment' so deeply felt when one enters the wooden door entrance to the Lanes in Hales Annex? Well, let me introduce you to The Ethos of the Lanes.

More importantly, I learned how to take care of myself and be comfortable being me, with all that that entails, and am ready to return to class and campus this Fall.

I had a summer. Then I came back here. Lots of stuff happened before and during Orientation, and I tell you all about it. After Orientation there's been a lot of schooling. And there's more on that to come.

ATTENTION OBERLIN CLASS OF 2017: TAKE A DEEP BREATH. EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE IS GOING TO BE OKAY. Roommate information is coming soon, I promise. In the meantime, here's something to distract yourselves.

In light of All Roads coming around once again, I'm writing about two first-years' college decisions and how they've worked out for us over the past year. So if you're a prospie viewing this page as you frantically try to decide before that May 1st deadline, read on!

I'll go with describing an average Thursday last semester, as that was my favorite day of the week.

I arrived as this terrible realization: I'm going about college the absolute wrong way. I have failed as a freshman.

I tell you the story of how I came to be a student at Oberlin. And I want to hear yours too!