Fade to Black, Role Credits.

Picture this…

We’re driving down a traffic-less Port Republic Road (just go along with it, ok?). Windows rolled down, hair whipping in the summer breeze, a cloudless blue sky stretches out in front of us, and “Someone That Loves You” by HONNE is blasting through the speakers. We each have a one dip of Kline’s Dairy Bar cake batter ice cream – cup or cone, pick your vice.

*fade to black*

The perfect ending, right? This is how I want you to remember me – the carefree graduate moving onto great things, smiling and laughing at horrible puns, starry-eyed and excited for the road ahead. This is how I want to go out – with Kline’s in my hand, a killer soundtrack, and surrounded by friends. I wish it were that easy…

Don’t picture me my sweatpants for the third day in a row, hair in a messy bun to hide its greasy and dirty nature, nervously picking at my cuticles, raccoon eyes from sleep deprivation, fingers blistered from excessive writing, deliriously wandering campus in disbelief that this is my final finals week, in denial that in 25 days, I will be leaving the country for 27 months of foreign service.

How do I even begin to say goodbye, not just to ShoutOut!, but to James Madison University – my beloved friends who have supported me through the best and worst; wise mentors who have guided me in my studies, career path, and personal trials; the reliably-long Starbucks line in Carrier Library; my apartment’s sloth-speed wireless connection; the too-narrow and overcrowded doorway to the main stairs in Harrison Hall; the Quad cats who have graced me with purrs and luck; the D-Hall hill (rip D-Hall and Market One); Dennis, who always greets me with a bright smile at the sandwich line in Dukes. I could go on and on about all things I will miss about this glorious community.

It is hard to say goodbye to a place that I have called my home for four years (18% of my lifetime woah). It is difficult, but it’s welcome. It is time. I am scared for the future, but I embrace it and am hopeful that it’ll all work out. As the door to my college life closes behind me, I reach to open the door to a career in foreign service.

My name is Annie Sherman and I am @BoobsRadley. For those of you who have read my work over the past two semesters, I thank you. It has been quite a wild ride – one full of personal growth, expansion of my feminism and worldview, and challenges to my belief systems that ultimately led to a strengthened resolve. I have loved blogging and taking on the role of co-editor with SassyYazzy and HeroineAddict. I am grateful for being embraced by the ShoutOut! community and welcome the opportunity to join the ranks of its alumni. I can’t wait to see what the next generation of blogger has in store.

With that, all that’s left to say is “That’s all Folks!”

Feature Image Source: Wikimedia Commons