Coming to Darlington was a big and unexpected change in my life, really something that happened on a whim, just to prove that I could. At the time, leaving behind my friends and family had seemed easy, but then move-in day freshman year arrived, and I realized that Darlington was more than the photo galleries of smiling faces: I was actually going to have to make friends.
Now, I was the public school kid, treading on unfamiliar territory with others who had spent their entire lives in private school or even their entire lives together at Darlington, and the task of infiltrating what was sure to be tight-knit social groups was daunting. However, as the first week passed, I realized that everyone else was nervous, just like me, and looking for a group of people to be “their” people.
I remember reading somewhere before I ever came to Darlington that being a dorm student was just like a sleepover with 30 of your best friends, and while I couldn’t say that I was close with everyone, I could say that that statement is an accurate one. Whether it was freshman year or this year, I can say that I go to sleep every night surrounded by people that I love and who love me in return, and there is no greater feeling than that.
Needless to say, I found a group of people to be “mine,” and you can find us together every day at lunch, arguing over TV shows, or discussing music or mental disorders and all the finer things in life. I’m lucky enough to be involved with a group of people who are both day and dorm students and who don’t let that distinction get in the way of our friendship, which is something that I see happen to so many other students who feel like they need to pick a side. I wouldn’t be where I am, nor enjoy my time here at Darlington near as much without both my dorm and day student friends, everyone bringing just a little something different to the group that wouldn’t have been achieved otherwise.
I can’t contribute all of friendships here to just other students though, because I would be neglecting a number of important relationships with various faculty members that have made living here so much better. I had never imagined that I would find my English teacher to be one of the most interesting people I knew, that my coaches, past and present, would be such rocks in my life when things were going downhill, or that I would even be considering spending eight days in a foreign country with my language teacher. I have never met teachers who were so focused on what was best for their students rather than what their grade on a paper might be, and it reminds me that I am more than just a number here at Darlington.
Since I’ve been here at Darlington, I have hit both rock bottom and felt on top of the world, and without everyone here, I would have had no one to pull me up or anyone to share the amazing view with. I consider myself beyond lucky to live in a place full of such support with people who love me. My roommate is like my sister, my friends are the craziest group of kids you’ll ever meet, and I have a number of other people who treat me like I’m they’re own child. Darlington is by no means perfect, but it’s these wonderful people who make me glad that I took that leap of faith three years ago. I really would be a totally different person without them, and I am proud to call these people my home.
