I feel incredibly happy and proud for surviving the past four and a half years. I’ve had such an amazing experience at U of T and I’m so lucky to have had unbelievable support.

My graduation ceremony was surprisingly well organized (it was only an hour) and our speaker, Tanya Mars, kept her speech short, sweet, and inspirational. The day was perfect to reunite with old friends and to officially have that expensive piece of paper in my hands.

HONOURS BACHELOR OF ARTS DEGREE! *happy dance, happy dance, happy dance*

I want to send one last thank you to everyone who have made my university experience incredible:

– My loving family for dealing with my stress and mood swings during exam time. Also, big thank you for my parents for driving me to school every morning (special thanks to my mom for screaming “I LOVE YOU! HAVE A GREAT DAY!” every time I walked out of the car).

– My friends, there are so many of you, I don’t know where to start. Thank you to those who endured countless hours in the library with me, for pouring me a drink when school got tough and those special few who I’ve had late night conversations with about our future and promised each other, no matter what, we will always support one another.

– My soccer and hockey teammates and coaches. THANK YOU! I can never explain my gratitude and how much you all truly made my university experience unforgettable. The crazy practice schedules and intense game play aside, I made SO many great friends (rookie nights will always be the best nights) and I want to thank you all for pushing me and getting me back into shape! Also, thank you to the countless bus drivers who drove us to our games and whoever had to wash our jerseys (you’re a brave, brave soul).

– My professors, thank you. To my drama teachers for believing in my weirdness on and off stage. To me English teachers for forcing me to read literature I thought I’d never enjoy (English Civil War Literature and Native North American Literature especially). Journalism teachers, you were tough. You were hard on all of us with tight deadlines and high expectations. Thank you. You taught me all I needed to know for the real world and even though I have left countless number of tears in the newsroom, thank you for your criticism and hard work. Every assignment made me a stronger journalist and I have no one but you all to thank.

– Finally, I’d like to thank my MacBook Pro. You made my student life so much easier when it came to class notes and assignments. Thank you for supporting my procrastination when you thought I should slow my life down, for staying up with me and never over-heating or dying. Oh, and for dealing with ROSI (U of T people know who), she can be unfair sometimes but we made it through together.

Alright, I believe that’s all who I wanted to thank.

U of T is such an amazing institution (no wonder we’re the best in Canada) and I’m proud to say I’m officially an alumni! YAHOO! 🙂

XO

Jessica