From a chickadee: Sophie

Freshman year of college is all about exploration. For me, this meant trying to join a bunch of organizations and piling my plate high, just like I did in high school. I thought that if I kept things consistent with what I had already been doing, college would be an easy transition. Now, I value the changes I’ve made much more than the constants.

Ever since middle school, I had played trumpet in band and loved it, so naturally I decided to join the Longhorn Band. The first week, I was pretty unsure of how I felt about LHB. I knew that I loved marching and playing and music and all the components of band, but it was way tougher than I thought it was going to be. It made sense, though; the organization is based around performing for tens of thousands of people every weekend. The stakes were higher publicity wise than they were in high school. On my and all other LHB members’ end, this meant intense rehearsals, learning and memorizing difficult music at a fast pace, and just being generally accountable at all times. Once I got into the groove of things and started making friends, my initial hesitation morphed into gratitude. Although it wasn’t easy, I became thankful that LHB allowed me to enter my first year of college with a plethora of friends and a purpose.

Being a member of LHB also allowed me to go to football games, which I’m not sure I would have gone to otherwise. Having never even been to a college football game before, this proved to be pretty exciting, especially since we had a pretty strong season. The sense of pride that everyone elicited was so contagious, and made me feel like I was making some sort of impact on the crowd even if it was very small. LHB also brought me places I had never been before like for the game against OSU which took place in Oklahoma. The bus rides to and from that game were exhausting yet infinitely entertaining and hilarious, and are something that I will remember forever.

After indulging in LHB for a full semester, I ended up deciding that it wasn’t for me in the long run. This is what taught me that college was all about exploration, and what pushed me to join Chickadees. I learned that now is the time to try new things and immerse oneself into as many experiences as possible. I am glad that I gave LHB a chance and thankful for what I discovered about myself from it.

Fly,

Sophie Hughes

Eta Class