Commentary
My name is Madeleine Fahlbusch. I’m a 19-year-old Psychology major, fresh out of high school and a Libra. It’s the middle of February and I’m about halfway through my second semester at Sinclair Community College. These past few months have been exciting, as I have began my college career.
I recently moved to the Dayton area from a little place in Germany called Oberstaufenbach. Oberstaufenbach is a tiny village in the Rheinland-Pfalz region of Germany and about an hour away from Frankfurt, it mainly consists of farmland and rolling hills. Whenever I used to take my dog for a walk around my neighborhood, I felt like Julie Andrew’s character in the “Sound of Music” singing and spinning around atop a hill.
People always ask me if any of my friends spoke English. My dad was in the Air Force so the school I attended, Ramstein High School, was on the military base and all my friends were American. While living overseas I was fortunate enough to be able to travel to many places that I had only seen in photographs, such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris and Big Ben in London. However, my day-to-day life felt like any other stereotypical high school experience from the movies in America — lots of homework, impossible exams, memorable school dances and chilly football games. Except for exciting family vacations and phenomenal shopping sprees, it was easy for me to forget that I was living in a European country.
Moving to Ohio and attending Sinclair definitely took some getting used to. As I’m sure many first year students know, college can be pretty intimidating.
The night before my first day, I was very worried about a number of things. I was nervous that I was going to get lost because the school seemed massive. I was worried that people were going to think I was some weird girl from Germany because I wasn’t really savvy with what was current here in America. All my clothes were from German clothing stores so I was worried that everyone would think I dressed strangely. I didn’t understand what this country’s obsession was with slapping a mustache on everything and I certainly didn’t understand the oddly specific obsession with bacon. Then again, I didn’t understand Germany’s obsession with David Hasselhoff and house music either, so who knows? The thing about starting college that scared me the most was the fear of failure. The leap from high school to college can be very daunting. Looking back at all those fears that plagued me the night before my first day makes me think about how far I’ve come and how I’ve disproven all those fears.
Did I get lost? Maybe once or twice. Just because I took a wrong turn at some point didn’t mean that I was going to be lost in an unfamiliar hallway forever. As students of Sinclair, we are actually really lucky because there are clearly labeled signs hanging in every hallway that display where nearby buildings are. So navigating through the numerous corridors of the school isn’t too complicated.
Did I make friends? Not the first day. Not even the second day. However by the middle of the second week, I had a friend to talk to in every class. Making friends isn’t an instantaneous thing, especially when attending a commuter school. I believe it’s much harder than at a four year college where everyone’s living together 24/7. To make friends, you need to take the initiative — but if you are willing to try, it will happen. Just give it time.
Did I fail my classes? No, I’m proud to say that I’m doing well at Sinclair academically. Much better than when I was in high school. At Ramstein High School, I was a B student who frequently also earned C’s. Not extremely inspiring stuff. Being in college has made me want to really clean up my act when it comes to my schoolwork. My grades are now predominantly A’s and B’s.
I’m really happy with the classes I’ve taken so far and the experiences I’ve gained through them. One of my favorites was the Introduction to Cultural Anthropology class that discussed the interesting history and development of early humans. For a project, I had the opportunity to tutor Hispanic refugees at one of the local Dayton churches.
Another class I’m taking now that I really enjoy is Child and Adolescent Literature, which is a lot of fun. So far we’ve read “Charlotte’s Web” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” which were two stories I loved as a child. We’re also going to be reading “Perks of Being a Wallflower” which is my favorite book. I also really like my Introduction to Journalism class because I’m learning so much about the field of journalism, which is also a strong interest of mine. I write for the Clarion on a regular basis so what I learn in that class really helps me improve.
I’m very happy and comfortable with my experience here at Sinclair. My time has been so much better than I thought it was going to be. These past few months have taught me to be brave and take the plunge into a new life experience. It may be uncomfortable at first, but if you give it time and put in some effort you may be surprised by how much you grow to like it. Good luck on the rest of the semester, everyone.