Students all over Michiana are eating up the last minutes of summer vacation, laughing at the kids across the state line who have been in school for a week or more. They’re likely dreading the days to come as they pack their backpacks with shiny new school supplies or the minivan with new furniture for their college dorm rooms.

Quite frankly, part of me is a little jealous.

I was always one of the odd few who loved school and couldn’t wait to get my hands on a new textbook. Unlike most students, I eagerly anticipated what we referred to at Western Michigan University as “syllabus day” — the first day of school.

Nonetheless, there were plenty of days I wondered why I was putting in so much effort, nearly defeated by the overwhelming pressure every ambitious college student experiences.

Although I only received my degree a little more than a year ago, I find myself looking back and laughing my own naiveté. I remember so often thinking that the days of part-time jobs and ramen noodles, term papers and final exams were sure to be the most chaotic and difficult days of my life.

I hate to break it to you, young readers, but that just isn’t the case. I wish I could tell you that once the degree hits your hands, it’s smooth sailing, and maybe for some of you, it will be. Don’t be discouraged.

I am by no means an expert on college or post-college life, but the time lapsed between graduation and my career has given me a unique perspective.

In this short time, this is what I’ve gathered: You never stop learning. Instead of final exams once a semester, you have them once a day. All-nighters to finish that essay become 12-hour days to prepare for special projects, and that money you’re paying on textbooks and credits becomes money you’ll spend on rent and student loans.

Here’s the fun part, though. That amazing feeling you get when you finish your last final, when you get an “A” on a paper you worked on for weeks, when you walk across that stage with your family screaming for you, that rush, you get it every single day.

I cannot tell you how rewarding it is to work in a field I am so passionate about. I spend every day doing what I love to do, and I would have never found these passions without the strain and struggle I experienced in high school and college.

So yes, there are challenges. There always will be. But those challenges are what make my life so exciting. When you’re dealing with what you love, suddenly the stress and chaos becomes a little less — well, chaotic.

So, students returning to school — college, grade school, junior high or otherwise — I challenge you to take advantage of the plentiful opportunities available to you. Join a club or civic group. Try out for a new sport. Take a class out of your comfort zone. Make new friends.

And while you’re at it, find your passion. There is no better time than now to find what makes the chaos worthwhile.

Ambrosia Neldon is the managing editor at Leader Publications. She can be reached by phone at (269) 687-7713, or by email at ambrosia.neldon@leaderpub.com.