The Butterfly Effect

After getting back home from an amazing weekend with friends from home AND uni, for some reason, I began to think of The Butterfly Effect, and how one tiny change in your past could affect your entire future. One small change could make everything different.

What would have happened if I didn't get accepted into Kent, but got my second choice uni of Essex? I would have had a completely different set of friends, and not one detail of the last year and a half of my life would be the same. 

What if I didn't meet my now housemate on Twitter before we moved to Kent? We weren't in any of the same seminars, so it would be unlikely that we would have met at uni, but I also wouldn't have met any of the people she introduced me to, who have become some of my favourite people in the world. 

What if I chose not to go to uni? I might still be with my ex, I might have had a full time job, thinking of moving away from home, who knows! 

What if a certain man-friend got into his first choice university instead of Kent? Although our relationship hasn't been the most straightforward of the bunch, the last year of my life would have been completely different! Maybe I would have been in a different relationship, or maybe I would have had a chance to be single at uni. 

All of the ones I thought of were to do with uni, but there are so many what ifs that could have completely changed who I am now. I suppose what I'm trying to say is, think about your decisions carefully, because who knows, one tiny decision that might seem insignificant at the time, could be a huge game changer to your life. 

Changes

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been overcome with changes that have occurred in various aspects of my life. Although my work-load for uni hasn’t gone up by that much, my determination to complete my assignments to a high standard has. Last year, I didn’t really care that much about my work, purely because I knew I only needed 40% to pass the year, and whatever mark I did get didn’t actually count towards my final grade. Whereas now, I’m fully aware that whatever mark I get this year, will count as 40% of my overall degree. Now that’s scary. I’ve been a lot more motivated to complete my work to a high quality.

I’ve also been getting used to not living on campus. I moved into a lovely house with 5 amazing girls, about a 15-20 minute walk from campus. Although the distance isn’t an issue in the slightest, I’ve been adjusting to waking up earlier to allow time to walk to my lectures. It’s also been strange to not live a minute away from everyone else! Last year, it was so simple to visit friends, because the furthest anyone lived from me was 5 minutes! Now, it’s a 35 minute walk to see most of my friends, which is harder, but it also means I’ve been making more of an effort to make plans to see them, whereas before, I took for granted that they lived so close to me.

Compared to last year, I’ve rarely felt the need or want to go out at night. Whereas last year, I was out in the pub or clubs about 2-3 times a week, I’ve been perfectly happy to stay at home, having a film night with the girls, or going out for a meal  instead of spending the money on alcohol or taxi fares. Maybe it’s because the novelty of the fresher’s madness has worn off, and it’s a lot more effort to go out, rather than having everything available on campus. Whatever the case, I’ve found myself saving a lot more money!

The last change that’s affected me over the last few weeks, has been the return of a certain man in my life. Although I had no intention of anything like this happening, sometimes second chances aren’t the worst thing in the world, despite what other people might think. I’m not yet “in a relationship”, but this has been a huge change for me, considering how things have been for the last few months. Sometimes it’s just nice to have someone who you know you can talk to when you need them, and someone who’s there to give a cuddle when you’re feeling like shit.

Has anything changed for you recently?  For the better or for worse?