Dante Tyler is a senior at EWU and the ASEWU president. Guest columns do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of The Easterner, its staff members or Eastern Washington University.

It is strange being a senior. Being forced to start thinking about what to do with the rest of your life. Do you continue to go to school, enter into the workforce, go travel the world?

These are the questions that are on the minds of all my classmates as we all get toward the end. It is only natural that the closer I get to the end, the more I look back at how I got here and how far I have gotten.

I remember when I first got to EWU and how proud I was to be the first person from my family to go to college and how many different opportunities that were open for me. I had a real fear that I was going to miss out on something, so I started to do everything that I possibly could.

I started by joining a lot of different student organizations to both meet people and to help better myself. This helped me experience different world views and backgrounds that I had never been exposed to.

I also started to learn better communication styles and leadership skills. I made new friends and great connections that helped benefit my future. This may have been very time consuming, but a whole lot more fulfilling than staying at home watching Netflix or doing other activities that would not benefit me in the long run.

And don’t get me wrong, I still find plenty of time to watch shows and play video games, but to me, 24 hours is a long time and I find it more satisfying when I do finally have the time to sit down and just relax with friends.

I reflect a lot about how little time I have left, not only at EWU, but also with how short life is. I find myself wondering why I am here? I usually conclude that one of the main reasons for me to exist is to have fun and make an impactful change in this world.

It may not seem like joining your hall council, doing intramural sports or starting a beehive club is that substantial, but these are the steps to making yourself better. Taking a step outside of your comfort zone while finding something that you find love in.

When doing new things, you will encounter more and more people, helping you have a tangible impact on their lives while also building skills that will excel you into success after EWU.

If you ask me, university is all about learning, but learning can’t only be done through lectures. University is also about experiencing other people’s world views, learning skills and getting out of your comfort zone. By joining or starting a student organization, you are taking the steps to not only having fun, but bettering yourself as well.

So, when you get to the end of your college career, what will you be reflecting on?