VSU students, as we continue to face unforeseeable times during this fatal pandemic, we must realize how resilient we are in this situation.

The world as we know it is changing in ways that we never thought would happen. We often learned about pandemics such as the Black Death and 1918 Influenza outbreak, but we never predicted that we would live through one ourselves.

Before the Delta variant came into play, COVID-19 seemed to have calmed down, which prompted many schools, including our own, to do away with masks and social distance policies.

However, now that the variant has taken over and COVID-19 cases have skyrocketed again, we need to play our part in keeping ourselves and our communities as safe as possible.

This could be by getting vaccinated, or if you are not comfortable with the vaccination, continuing to wear your mask and social distance when necessary.

There is so much to worry about in a time like this, and yet, we still find the strength and encouragement to start (or continue) the journey of college.

As many of us have learned before starting college, college is no easy journey; there will be many detours, roadblocks, potholes and anything else that life will undoubtedly throw at us.

You may have to worry about friends and family, finances may be low, and classes and extracurriculars will be challenging and overwhelming.

When you add the stress and uncertainty of living through a pandemic, to many, college may simply be an inconvenient burden more than a way to achieve your goals and live your dreams.

However, all of this is not being said to scare you, but to encourage you. You are here for a reason.

Even if you are unsure about where you want to go in life, college is the place that will give you the tools you need in order to explore your interests.

College is the place where you may find friends who may become family because the struggles you face and the fun you have together bring you closer.

College is the place where you will build a network of connections that will help you through college and continue that help after you graduate.

College is the place where your learning experiences will give you knowledge and wisdom that goes beyond academics.

College is the place where you truly build and shape yourself into the person you want to be.

No college is perfect, no collegiate journey is perfect and sometimes you may not be sure if all of it is worth it.

However, you are here, amongst a pandemic at that. You have the persistence, resilience and courage to come to college and work towards bettering yourself for your future, and for that, you are much stronger than the forces that are trying to hold you back.

Welcome back to VSU, and The Spectator wishes you the best of luck with your college experience. We hope that you become the productive citizen that you are working hard to be.

This editorial reflects the general opinion of the Spectator.