#OhThePlacesYouWillGo – From Uncertainty to Finding My Place

I remember reminiscing, not too long ago, during my school graduation speech, about how fourteen years in the same school left everything feeling like a blur of happiness, laughter, tears, and everything in between. Fourteen years is enough time for a place to start feeling like home, so it made sense that it would all blur together. What I didn’t expect was that one year at Ashoka would leave me feeling the same way, with that same richness of memories, that same comfort, and that same sense of belonging I thought took fourteen years to build.

When I walked onto campus for the first time, trying to figure out where everything was, there was a kind of excitement in me, but it also came with an unfamiliar, slightly unsteady feeling of not knowing where I fit yet. I remember watching people move around campus like they’d been doing it forever, as though navigating the place was second nature to them, and wondering when that would happen for me. It turns out, it took about a week. That uncertainty, like everything else that felt overwhelming during those first few days, faded faster than I expected because the place itself is so warm and accessible that finding people who share your interests, whether through academics, sports, or clubs, takes almost no time.

Being part of the Ashoka women’s football team was a huge part of my first-year experience. I’d always played back in school, and I was glad to find that I could continue doing so in college with a group of people who challenged and encouraged me in equal measure. The evening practice sessions became the best hour of my day and helped me take my mind off everything else. Beyond just playing, I wanted to take my interest in sports further, so I joined Edict Sports, where we write and publish sports articles that allow me to engage with my interests in a completely different way. In fact, come to think of it, that’s what struck me most about campus. I’d entered college with the energy, eagerness, and zeal to pursue everything I was passionate about, and being on campus really channels that energy because there’s always something that keeps you intellectually engaged and allows you to explore the things you’re interested in.

As for academics, while there was definitely rigour, it pushed me out of my comfort zone in a way that didn’t unsettle me but rather helped me grow. It made me realise just how much more capable I was of understanding things, and it sparked a curiosity about a whole range of subjects I hadn’t expected to care about. If there’s one thing that the first year taught me academically, it’s how to actually read. I wasn’t much of a reader before college, but somewhere over the last year, I’ve read more books than I had in my entire life before it, simply because the environment brings out that side of you. Ashoka never made me feel intimidated or like I couldn’t keep up. Instead, it made me want to do everything, be part of everything, and show up for everything.

It’s normal to miss home. It’s normal to find things hard. It’s normal to feel a little lost some days. I felt all of it too. But looking back at this first year, I think my biggest takeaway is that it’s the people you’re with who make everything worth it. They say you become the people you surround yourself with. If that’s true, Ashoka has given me good company to become.

Kavya Murugan