Until we meet again

And that’s third year… done! It’s been a strange couple of weeks in Southampton as I’ve hit the three-quarter mark of my degree; it’s been as incredibly enjoyable, varied and challenging as ever, but tinged with a curious sense of poignancy as, after a magnificent spell here, many of the undergraduates who started at the same time as me have closed out their degree programmes and are now looking for jobs or opportunities beyond the realms of Southampton. Frankly, it’s terrifying to think that’ll be me in a year’s time!

At the moment it’s just strange to think that these fantastic people I’ve come to know won’t be in the city next year, and things will feel all the odder for it. Whether I’ve met them through random first-year encounters (you meet so many people in freshers’ week it’s tough to keep track!), my flat, my house, performing arts, student media, friends of friends, friends of friends of friends, on the bus, coursemates, union activities, at a bar or club, through a mutual love of one thing or another, whatever, these people have come to define my University experience so far in all aspects of life.

It really wouldn’t have been the same so far without them and their company, and it’s going to be very weird walking around campus from September and not bumping into their friendly faces and chatting away – or sharing an understanding quick nod when late for lectures or stressed by an assignment or two! For me, they ARE the University of Southampton, so it’ll certainly be a different – not worse in any way, but different – place for me next year. It’ll also prove yet another example of how things in the world of Higher Education keep moving on and refreshing themselves, keeping the challenges of every day fresh while constantly introducing you to a huge variety of people at the same time – there are always new friends to be met!

The SUSU Theatre Group 2013/14 Leavers (and a couple of us from the year group staying on!) – some of the best people I’ve met, they will be missed!

The Leavers’ Meals for both Theatre Group and Showstoppers were lovely occasions at the Vestry in town – great food, even better company!

But at the heart of my experience has been one core group of people who have acted almost as a second family to me since I arrived in the city all those months ago. At a risk of maybe being too honest for my own good (as they’ll remind me of this at a later date I’m sure!), I feel like I owe one set of people in particular a great deal because of what they’ve brought to my stay in the city: my incredible housemates, who have been a huge part of University life for me since the very beginning in September 2011 – crikey, I really hope they’re not reading this!

From first year…

… all the way through to third (this was taken at Grad Ball last week!), it’s been a blast living with my housemates!

As an eclectic bunch of people with hugely contrasting backgrounds, subjects and interests, at first I wasn’t sure that we’d necessarily be great friends, thinking that perhaps these large differences would make us naturally quite distant, but I honestly couldn’t have been more wrong from the start. The challenges which adapting to independent life threw at us in first year brought us together strongly and, as I look forward to moving in with a new household for the next academic year at the end of the month, I take with me the numerous (usually procrastination-based!) hours spent full of happy memories, hilarious in-jokes and important life lessons (for example: don’t store milk sideways in the fridge – just don’t! As I learnt on day three…) they’ve supplied me with.

I’m sure I’ll see them again soon enough – we’re meeting up over the summer at some point, and they’d better visit Southampton often! – but for now, flat W2 of Montefiore 4 (and those of you who joined us in houses along the way!), it’s been one heck of a three-year run – so thank you! After all, the great thing about the time at University we’ve shared, along with that of all the other people I’ve met, is that I know that these memories, links and relationships will persist long beyond the current day, with the social network photos there to prove it!

And for everyone soon to join the University in September, know that you’ve got all this to look forward to – and I mean for absolutely everyone! When I first arrived in Southampton I can recall being extremely nervous that I would be isolated and alone, far from home (I’m from the Northern parts of the country!) and not knowing anybody else from school who’d enrolled. Being quite shy, I was afraid that I wouldn’t know how to meet people, and that I’d lost the ability to make an entirely new set of friends – after all, how often are you tasked with completely reinventing your life from scratch?

But I honestly needn’t have worried. University has been the best time of my life so far, but mostly because of the people there, as I’ve never felt under pressure to go out and meet them, my relationships with them have more just been a natural consequence of being around campus and getting involved with activities where I can – and friendships really have just sprung up out of the ground as a result.

So as the past couple of weeks have filled themselves up with leavers’ meals, the 24 Hour Show (as I wrote about last time - it went fantastically well this year, so thanks to everybody who supported it!), murder mystery dinner parties, informal meetings, SUSUtv film shooting, picnics on the Common, celebratory nights out including the pinnacle of the year which was Grad Ball (as James recently discussed in a post – it was amazing!), I know I owe it all to the amazing student body of the University of Southampton.

The annual 24 Hour Show raised hundreds for the charity ‘Future Talent’, and was a hilarious occasion for both casts and audiences to boot! Thank you to the fantastic production team, band and staging society!

A murder mystery dinner party involving old and new Showstoppers committees was also a fantastic occasion!

It’s been quite a year for me and the Performing Arts as a whole – thank you so much to everyone who’s made it such a special one!

So to those of you still around after the summer holidays, and also to those moving on to pastures new, thank you for an unbelievably fun and fulfilling one, two or three years, and I’m looking forward to seeing you again soon enough. It’s been a blast – until we meet again!

Robin