I didn’t want to go to Binghamton University.

For as long as I can remember, I wanted to attend an Ivy League school. In my senior year of high school, when I was applying to colleges, I got a transfer option to Cornell University. I would complete a year at another university and then be able to attend Cornell my sophomore year.

I went into my freshman year viewing everything as temporary. I would make the best of it and then have my grand exit. I didn’t join any clubs. I focused on the classes necessary for my transfer and let hobbies fall by the wayside.

But then something happened. I had a really amazing freshman year, and suddenly the thought of leaving felt less like an opportunity and more like a cage.

Against my best wishes, I had put down roots. I made relationships I wasn’t ready to leave behind and set myself on an academic path I was really enjoying.

So when the time came to finally push that button — accept or deny — I threw caution to the wind and, through shuddering sobs, I pressed deny. And just like that, it was over.

I had made a decision about my future, and I was absolutely terrified that it was the wrong one. I wanted the world to stop for a moment and give me time to compose myself, but before I knew it, I was starting my sophomore year at the school that 18-year-old me had been determined to leave one day.

I knew this time I should actually try to have a more productive year, so I went to UFEST looking for clubs to join, and Pipe Dream caught my eye.

I had always loved writing. Even before I could physically write, I was a storyteller at heart. As a child, I would lie awake at night with a thousand adventures swirling through my head. Then, as I got older, I grew an endless catalog of unfinished projects — murder mysteries, short stories, coming-of-age dramas, horrible fan fiction I cringe just thinking about.

A newspaper could be an opportunity to actually finish something.

So I told myself to just put my email down.

Then I told myself to just go to the general interest meeting and see what it was like.

Then I told myself to apply for the Opinions section, and if I hated it, I could just quit.

Then, somewhere along the way, I became an intern, then an assistant, and now the future head of the section.

Over the course of three years, Pipe Dream has given me the opportunity not only to make my voice heard but also to help others’ voices be heard.

When I look back on my time in college, I realize that I may not have chosen the easy or obvious route, but what I did do was pave my own way. And I couldn’t have done it without Pipe Dream or the people who supported me along the way.

Thank you to Sophia, Naia, Kylie and Leah. I probably would have left if you didn’t make my freshman year so special. We will forever be the girls (no Mrs.).

To Sadie, deciding to sit with you at lunch when we were 14 was the best decision I ever made. Thank you for always being my rock, even at separate schools.

To Jack, I love you. Thank you for your endless support and for always being in my corner.

To my family, thank you for always reading my articles and sharing them on Facebook. And to Grandpa in particular, I’m sorry you won’t get to see me graduate, but I hope I made you proud.

To my sorority, Phi Mu, thank you for giving me many good memories and for giving me the most perfect lineage. Edie, Kaleigh, Jill, Tori, you are like the sisters I never had. Vivian, you never fail to make me smile. And of course, thank you for introducing me to my soul sister, Jenna — I’m going to hold you to your promise to backpack around Europe with me.

To any friends I didn’t mention, thank you. I’m not good at sappy stuff, but you have not gone unnoticed.

And thank you, Pipe Dream. You have been a wonderful constant throughout my time here. To Emma and Grace, you run this paper fiercely. To Antonia and Danica, you are the best Opinions team I could have ever dreamed of. I promise to take good care of Punch. To my editorial squad, I think we had some pretty good ideas — thanks for all the brainstorms and laughter. And to the rest of the staff, you all make this paper what it is and I’m in awe of you every production.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in college, it’s not the name or the prestige that makes the place. It’s the people.

It’s what you make of it.

Jordan Ori is Pipe Dream’s assistant opinions editor.