The College Experience

So here I am, (almost) halfway through the second semester at Harding, and I have yet to make a huge update to all my disconnected peeps back home. So here I go, with a short summary on The College Experience:

It's easy to see college as a time when you can, amongst other things, play tag in a science building until security kicks you out, or putting on a bathrobe at midnight so you can walk down the hall and pick up your TV. You might see it as a time where you are simultaneously free of the responsibilities of being an adult and the boundaries of living with your parents. It could be a time where you can focus on yourself and figure out who you really are, a time to experiment with who you really want to be for the rest of your life. But over the past few months I've begun to see that the best way to see this college experience is as a time where you have the freedom to focus on others.

Look at it from this perspective: As a child, you are focused entirely on yourself. Self-satisfaction is the essence of childhood. When you're a teen, you think you know everything. This may sound cliched, but looking back, I can see clearly how unclear everything really was. And when you finally get to adulthood, sure, you may be focused on your family, their care and upbringing, but those are people you already hold close to your heart. College is a time when you have the opportunity to be surrounded by people you don't know, and who often need help.

Over the past few months I've been able to talk to people who have been through some hard stuff, and I've seen a lot of viewpoints that I never would have considered. I think it would be a shame to not get involved in as many peoples lives as possible and make as positive of a change in peoples lives as you can. I've been spreading my roots as far as I can, and I'm better for it. So yes, you can sit in your room and surround yourself in soda cans and Caff paraphernalia, or you can go outside, find a game of Ultimate, and jump right in. I doubt there's anyone on this campus who would object to having more people in a game. Join a massive snowball fight, a prayer group, a Social Club, SOMETHING! Just get out there and experience what really makes Harding a great place: you're surrounded by people who honestly give a crap about you without even knowing your name. As far as I know, there's nowhere else like this on Earth, ladies and gentlemen. Use it.