Good things DO come out of First-Year Writing!

Sitting in your First-Year Writing class during the first week of school can feel daunting. At least, it did for me. I knew absolutely no one and the prospect of making conversation and actually being social made me want to run out of the room.

Our professor began by pairing us up and instructed us to talk for a few minutes to learn our partner’s name, where they’re from, and a fun fact about them to share with the class. Of course, my partner remembered my facts perfectly and I promptly forgot her home state as soon as it was my turn to present (it was Maryland).

Then, to my surprise, we were told to hand each other our phones and exchange numbers. We both entered our names with “FYW” next to them as an easy way to identify each other. These were to be our “people” in class, our professor informed us—our first point of contact should we ever need anything. It was a nice gesture, but I didn’t think we would actually reach out to each other.

We initially chatted in class, talking about Solitaire, browsing the Urban Outfitters website, and occasionally discussing our class readings. She watched me do the crossword and I watched her study Spanish, but we remained in-class acquaintances.

As we worked through the various essays of the semester, in-class chatter turned to texting which turned into study meetings and meals. What started as an assigned partnership had turned into a really wonderful friendship. To this day, we get weekly meals, catching up on each others’ lives.

By the end of the semester, I am proud to say we both removed the “FYW” from the end of our contact names. This friendship was going to last a lot longer than First-Year Writing.

FYW Friends via Tal Bloom