Andrea Rabearisoa

In high school, I participated in varsity dance team. It was one of the many things that excited me about going to school. The team gave me a feeling of comfort and made me feel at home. When the dance season was over, I was devastated thinking that my dance career was over. I wanted nothing more than to be part of a team again.

When I finally committed to Longwood, I decided to research the dance opportunities. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to dance forever. Three options came up, including Blue Heat Dance Team, Fierce Dance Team and The Company. I did some additional research and decided that Blue Heat was the team I wanted to join because its dance styles are similar to the team I was on in high school.

As the tryouts were approaching, I finally convinced my roommate, Ashley, to try out for the team as well. Knowing that we both had some type of dance background, I thought it would be something fun for us to experience together. Though the tryouts were tough, we both made the team!! We then had our team initiation and met the rest of our new family. Even though joining the team will be a time commitment, I think it’ll be worth it.

In the past, being away from home hasn’t always come easy to me. From summer camps to retreats, I’ve always found myself becoming homesick even if it was only a couple of nights. Before move-in day I was extremely nervous about how I was going to react to the new living situation. I was afraid of how I was going to get used to my roommate/suitemates, making new friends and, most of all, missing my family.

I’ve now been at Longwood for more than a week, and I can truthfully say that I’ve never felt more at home. Ever since move-in day, everyone at Longwood has made me feel so welcome! Everyone’s always smiling here, and they made me feel like family.

This year I have the privilege of living in Frazer, which is the most recently renovated residence hall at Longwood. Actually, the other buildings are nice as well.

Living in the dorms has given me the opportunity to make lots of lifelong friends. It’s fun to know that your friends live in the same room or building as you because there are plenty of places to hang out without even leaving your building.

Now, I’m not going to lie. Farmville isn’t the most entertaining place I’ve ever been. But over this past week, I’ve made so many friends—and they make living here interesting! For fun, my new friends and I enjoyed a night of watching Bachelor in Paradise together! We bonded over arguing couples, countless amounts of homework and junk food. It was the highlight of my week.

I can’t wait for more nights like that one, and I’m so excited for everything else Longwood has in store for me!