The Pointer UW-Stevens Point Student Newspaper
It sounds cliché, but the past four years have gone by in the blink of an eye.
One second you are in your first class as a freshman and then you are preparing for graduation.
I came to UWSP as an awkward freshman without a lot of friends in the area and little knowledge of who I was as a person.
I leave as an awkward 22-year-old, but what I have gained in the last four years is a strong group of supportive friends and a better knowledge of who I am and who I want to be.
I do not know if I will miss the city of Stevens Point or the campus, but what I can guarantee is that I will miss the people I have met here.
As a sports editor and reporter, I have had the opportunity to work with an incredible group of people at this publication, all of whom I will miss dearly.
I have also had the opportunity to talk to virtually everyone in the athletic department, from the athletic director all the way down to incoming freshmen athletes.
And before I get too far into my farewell, I want to say thank you.
Thank you to all of the athletes and coaches that were gracious enough to grant me an interview. Thank you to the sports information department for making my job a lot easier.
Most importantly, thank you to The Pointer staff. Working for this paper has been one of the best experiences of my life, and I am grateful to every one of you.
Now comes the part where I pass on some incredibly deep knowledge of what I have learned in the last four years at this university.
I will spare you readers by keeping it simple. There are two facts about life that I have acquired while at UWSP and they will stay with me throughout my entire life.
These facts are not learned from a class or a lecture, they are simply bits of knowledge that I have learned along the way during this journey that is college.
The first one is that life is all about taking chances, may they be big or small.
Walking into this paper and asking for a job was a taking a chance, even attending this university where I knew very few people was a risk, but they both turned out to be great decisions.
Rolling out of bed in the morning is a chance that we take everyday so we can experience life.
Sometimes taking chances in life can be frightening. What if I fail? What if I get embarrassed?
Being wary of taking these risks is a natural reaction though. Sometimes the things that scare us the most are the most important things we need to do in life. That fright makes us aware that it is so important.
My advice is to take more chances, do something that is outside of your comfort zone. You never know, it could be the best decision you have made in your life.
The second bit of wisdom I have learned is that life is about pursuing happiness after graduation.
Last week, I had to write a five-year plan for one of my classes. I went the traditional route of explaining the job ladder that I feel like I need to climb.
One of my classmates and friends, Gus Merwin, took a different route. One of the focal points of his plan was to do something that makes him happy.
After graduating, all of us will be busily searching for jobs. Before we do this we must consider: how can I achieve my own happiness?
Personally, I feel like happiness is achievable by accomplishing three things in life: To do something that you love, to work in a place or city that you love, and live in that place with somebody that you love.
If people can achieve these three things, I believe that true happiness is attainable.
I know that student loans have to be paid off and the only way to do that is to get a job. But before accepting that first job, ask yourself: will this fulfill my expectations of happiness?
Life is too short to not be happy. Life is too short to not take a chance on something you are passionate about.
Thank you for reading and best of luck on this crazy journey called life.
Will Rossmiller
@willrossmiller
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