Marching Forward

Everything happens for a reason. 

This is what I tell myself no matter what situation I find myself in. When unexpected things occur, we shouldn't be upset about it; it just means God's plans are different than ours. He leads us in different directions for reasons that are usually unclear to us. We may have expectations for the future, but then something happens that we didn't anticipate. And contary to what some believe, we are not the pawns in God's board game. Board games are uncertain; everything is left up to chance. But, there is no such thing as luck in the Christian world. Everything happens for a reason.

I have just finished up my first year at Sweet Briar College, and I am transferring to a new school in the fall. There are logical reasons as to why I am leaving,but I have had a wonderful experience for my first year. When I moved here in the fall of 2007, I was planning on staying for the next three years, but God had a different plan for me. He lead me to transfer to a different school that would work out better for my intended course of study, and for being closer to home. Sweet Brair was extremely positive for me. I learned more these past two semesters than I thought I ever would. I have had small classes, wonderful professors, I have made lasting friendships, and I have lived at the most beatuful campus in the nation. I have been blessed to be a part of the Sweet Briar community, but it is time for me to move on. 

Everything happens for a reason. We accept what it is God has chosen for us, and we move towards the future with eagerness. Our lives are not left up to chance. Everyone has a song. Find yours, and follow it through all of life's dynamics. 

Life's a Toss-Up

I was ten years old in the Las Vegas airport with my family. We were on our way to the plane when we went through a giant room with hundreds of slot machines. It was in the afternoon so there weren't any people around. My dad took the opportunity to teach my sisters and I a lesson about gambling, so he gave my mom a nickel and told her to put into the slot machine.

Why is it our parents teach us to stay away from gambling? It seems silly to want to give away our hard earned money without the guarantee that we will get something in return. If we do win money, it is only by chance. It's not very ethical to gamble; the money we lose was money that was honorably earned, and the money we win is money given by dumb luck. It becomes an addiction as soon as we win anything more than the amount we initially put into the machine. The whole idea of gambling is made to look so glamorous: a Vegas casino with show girls, men and women dressed as "high rollers," a band playing, drinks all around; it feels like a James Bond movie.

The money we earn by honest hard work is the money we want to hold on to; this is the money that isn't worth getting rid of. It is hard to learn this lesson, because sometimes you might just get lucky. My mom put the nickel into the machine, and pulled the handle. She won five dollars in return. We all looked up at dad, "bad example" he said. But we learned our lesson.  

Thou Shalt Honor the Honor Code

It's difficult isn't it. Sitting there with your unopened text book in front of you. You're timing yourself, and you're in the middle of your take-home exam. But number seven is just really hard, and you remember where the answer is in the book, but you can't look. But you knew the answer at one point, so why is it bad if you just...take...a little...peak? You slam the book shut, and you can't believe you almost looked up the answer. You put the text book back on the shelf, appalled at yourself for almost cheating. CHEATING? That word...everyone warns us about that word. In second grade it's one of the more evil words we learn. We can't even fathom the idea. You thank God for saving you from temptation. 

How hard is it to upkeep the honor code? How many students at Sweet Briar struggle with themselves every time their professor sends them home with an exam? What is it that helps the students obey the code? It is either because they are paranoid that they will get caught, they will feel guilty afterwards, they're tarnishing the school's good name, or because they feel they are letting God down. 

Even if nobody is in your room with you, and you never feel guilt, God is watching. He is always there. He sees our every move, and he doesn't want you to cheat. So, uphold the honor code, and don't pretend there will never be any consequences. 

Augghhhh!!!

You are sitting at the television, innocently watching Full House. It's commercial time, so you decide to flip through the channels. You come across a horror film. Someone is being murdered, fake blood is spurting everywhere, and one of the actors is yelling things from the script that he would otherwise never say in real life. You become addicted right away, you can't turn away now, you have to see what happens. You tell yourself it's just a movie. These are just actors doing their job, and none of this will affect you. Or will it? 

What kind of minds write horror stories? Everything you see on television was made up by somebody. The actor is onscreen worshiping the Devil because that is what the script calls for, but Satan doesn't think it's acting, he doesn't care. Murder isn't right in real life, so why is it interesting in a movie? We do not support people in prison who have actually commit crimes like this, and yet we watch it on t.v. What a sick world we live in. We find murder, gore, and devil-worshiping amusing. 

You  finally convince yourself to turn off the t.v, and you pray to God that you don't get nightmares that night. You also pray for the actors in the film. I wonder how they are sleeping tonight?

The Multi-Purpose Boathouse

I have never been to a boathouse party. I've heard it's an honor to be invited, and it's a rule to clean up afterwards if you're a first year. I've heard the parties can be a little wild at times, but I'm sure this isn't true for all of the parties. I bet some parties have balloons, cake, and absolutely no under-age drinking. This could also be my naivety speaking. What I do know about the boathouse at Sweet Briar is that it is also used for Easter morning sunrise service. This I attended along with  around twenty other students. For some reason, I think the parties outnumber us.

As I sat there it was very pleasant. Most everyone was wearing their Sunday best, the fire was going, and there was breakfast in the other room. Chaplain Adam gave a very good sermon about the importance of faith and prayer. He told a story about his walk to the chapel at a convent, and a nun stopped him. She asked where he was going, and he told her he was going to the chapel to pray. She said, "Thinking about praying is in itself a prayer." Thinking about doing something is just as effective as actually doing it. Thinking about the next boathouse party is just the same as being at the next boathouse party. What is it like? What are you doing at this party? 

I couldn't help but wonder what else happens between these walls. What kind of celebration takes place in this boathouse besides the celebration of Jesus' resurrection. Is it a house of God, or is it just a house of celebration? Any house is worthy of God's praise. And it just so happened that the boathouse at Sweet Briar College saw a new kind of celebration this morning. There is only one more question remaining, where were all the boats?

Airport Etiquette

Ever since I started flying alone back and forth between California and Virginia, everything has gone wrong. I have not had a normal flying experience yet, and I'm wondering if I ever will. The airport is the worst place to meet someone. I do not think it is possible to get a good impression of anybody when they are traveling. The airport has the ability to bring out the absolute worst in a person. The hardest thing to do is to remain pleasant and composed. 

Every time I have flown to and from school I have had an awful experience. I am used to cancelled flights, missed flights, being rerouted, spending the night in a strange city, going through high security check, losing luggage, paying fees for overweight luggage, and even getting filed off an airplane when we were about to take off because it was one minute over the time Federal Law permits the crew to be working. I have had a very hard time keeping my cool, and there have been so many times when I have wanted to scream at the person at the ticket counter. When I was stuck in California for a week because of foggy weather, I had seven flights cancelled before I drove to Los Angeles to fly out of an international airport. When I walked up to the ticket counter for the seventh time I was about to scream at the woman who was only hired to help with our flight problems. Another customer beat me to the counter, and she started yelling and cursing at the woman for reasons I couldn't quite understand. As soon as the customer was finished yelling, the woman behind the counter looked to me and asked what it was I needed. With the most polite voice I could manage I told her what my problems were and if she could help me book a flight through Los Angeles. 

The customer who beat me to the counter saved me from making the mistake she made. I would have yelled at the woman behind the counter, but I realized how awful I would have sounded by observing the way she conducted herself. No matter what situation we find ourselves in, it is important to act the way we know is right. My airport experiences always turn out awful, but the people who work there are only trying to help me, and I should act gracious and kind. And maybe my example will help others waiting in line behind me realize how they need to act. 

The Sweet Briar Voice Speaks Too Loudly

When my parents came to visit me at Sweet Briar for parent's weekend last semester, I made sure to tidy up my room. I made my bed, vacuumed the floor, and hid the school's newspaper. The reason I hid the Sweet Briar Voice is because I was embarrassed by some of the content, namely the column titled Vixen In the Sack. Every month, Vixen In the Sack publishes a new article, which I always try to avoid. How is it that an article like this finds its way into a newspaper that everyone is allowed to read? Students, friends, parents, and even faculty have read these articles. 

This newspaper represents our campus and its students, but I do not want to be part of this representation. I want to be associated with the articles about art, sports, and politics. I do not mind typifying these subjects because I am proud of our art, athletics, and government.  But I do mind being characterized in quotes such as "Many of Sweet Briar's single girls have an unfortunate habit of whoring themselves at every Hampden-Sydney frat party and VMI football game..." I am a Sweet Briar single, but I have never had the habit of "whoring" myself. Not to mention that the word "whoring" is used in a slang context. It is possible to be a whore, or to go whoring, but it is not possible to whore oneself. Using the word is almost as humiliating as reading it. 

 My parents found a copy of the Sweet Briar Voice before they left for home, and they read it. They were also embarrassed in what they read. Even though they know I am not the type of person who is partaking in these activities, they are still baffled as to why a school newspaper would reveal such indecent behavior in the the students at Sweet Briar College.