As I am writing this blog, I have a million things on my mind. I have a final exam at 8 am tomorrow, I have to pack up my dorm room, turn in final papers, hand in keys, and complete my undergraduate degree. This isn’t just a “goodbye” to my time at Olive Branch Counseling Associates as an Undergraduate Intern, but also a goodbye to my last four years at Trinity Christian College and to my life here in Palos Heights, IL.
If you had asked me if I was ready to leave a few weeks ago, I would’ve said no. I have been extremely grateful to be a student at Trinity Christian College. I made a lot of amazing memories and friends here that I will cherish for a lifetime. But I’ve also had some not-so-great memories that I want to leave behind. Getting accepted into Wheaton College Graduate School’s Clinical Mental Health Counseling program a couple of months ago and getting engaged two Saturday’s ago have left me with some very transitional feelings. I am feeling the push to leave. I am ready to close this chapter at Trinity Christian College and at Olive Branch Counseling Associates, and I am ready to move forward in life.
This summer will be filled with new experiences. I will be wedding planning this summer, which I am elated to do. I will also be starting a new job as an Inclusion Companion at the Fox Valley Special Recreation Association (FVSRA). I am truly thrilled to be working with this organization and to be working alongside my friends this summer. It is going to be a new challenge but will hopefully bring along new experiences that will help me better understand the profession and role I want to take on in the future.
As wonderful as this experience will be, I am still nervous about the future and what’s to come. When everyone rang in the new year with champagne, my only concern was what my last semester of senior year would look like and starting my first internship. If you had told me that I would be sitting here, writing a blog about how I was about to complete my undergraduate degree, that I would be engaged and start wedding planning this summer, and that I have been accepted into a nationally recognized college to complete my master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, and that I would be working at a better paying job this summer, I may not have believed you.
I have watched myself grow over the years, especially these last four years. If I’m being honest, I was so scared to leave home and move to Trinity Christian College and start this next journey for four years. And these four years were hard. But, oh my goodness, they were so rewarding. I wouldn’t be who I am today if I hadn’t gone through everything I went through if I hadn’t met the people I had met along the way. I’ve met some amazing people along the way. I met two of my bridesmaids at college. I am truly blessed to be sitting where I am sitting and be able to write these words down. I hope I can look back on this blog post in the future and see even more growth from where I am right now, to where I want to be in the future.
Thank you to everyone who helped me get to where I am today, whether that was financially, emotionally, spiritually, physically, or mentally. I couldn’t have done this alone. I am truly thankful, grateful, and blessed. I am so excited to graduate on Saturday and see what the future has in store for me.
By: Sara Corcoran, Undergraduate Intern
Olive Branch Counseling Associates
CounselingMatters.live 
Leave a Reply