Culture Shock- Where am I?

Being immersed in a new culture can be an exciting new adventure, but also an intimidating one. A very cliché time for being thrown into a new culture is the college freshman experience. I would have to conclude that that would be my scariest culture shock, but more specifically mine was going into college volleyball as a freshman. In high school my senior year, I was a volleyball captain and a starting all-around player. I was considered a top-dog, a leader, and somebody the younger girls could look up to. I was recruited to play at a couple different universities, but ultimately I chose UW-Superior as my final choice. I wanted to go into college with confidence and maintain my court composure that I had in high school, but when I first arrived and was ready to play it was incredible at how different things were. Many of my new teammates had already known each other, so the concept of being lonely was an understatement for how I felt. I didn’t have a volleyball roommate, I only previously knew one girl on the team, I was a new freshman taking away a senior’s position, and I was away from home for the first time; this was all shocking. I knew I was no longer a part of high school volleyball, and this immersion was like throwing a cold bucket of water on my head. It would be impossible to not be aware of the culture change, but describing it is difficult. I felt as though I was starting over; what I did in high school no longer mattered, nobody cared. I cried every day for the first week, and then things started to get easier; I started to blend into the team culture. Spending so much time together during preseason creates close relationships and it makes the transition a lot easier. The most interesting thought about this is the idea that a 100 mile drive and one year difference can make a completely new experience for somebody! I must admit that I got over the culture shock fairly quickly, but it was definitely a readjustment in my life...that I had to go through all over again at St. Scholastica as a Junior transfer student. Aye aye aye, what have I gotten myself into??