Call me a lunatic, then.

   

the chapel at Sacred Heart University, everybody.

    Life is beginning here on my campus, going by quickly yet slower than anything at the same time. Three weeks into my freshman year and my classmates and I are settling into our routines. I know my way around school now. I know when I have to leave my dorm in order to get to my first class on time. I know I have to drink at least two coffees on Mondays in order to survive my 3-hour lab after dinner.
    I'm falling in love with my new home like the leaves that are now cascading off the trees outside of Merton Hall. I love the atmosphere of every home football game that we, the Pioneers, host. I love walking back from the gym after a good, long run on the treadmill. I love flopping onto the grassy quad after choir practice with my roommate. I love the way the brightly colored, fallen leaves contrast with the vivid green grass outside of the library, where the ladies at the Starbucks inside are so chatty and my nursing major friends and I meet to study.
    I'm trying new things. Not just the chef's special at 63's- I began a ballroom dance class and surprisingly I do not suck at it. Dancing is fun- hard and confusing at first, but after much stumbling and tripping over my partner's feet I am able to glide almost gracefully across the floor with minimal glancing at my ever-clumsy, sock-clad feet. I joined an improv acting troupe, and let me tell you that I hadn't laughed long and hard since I got here, until our Tuesday night meeting in the little theater.        Stepping outside of my comfort zone has surprisingly boosted my confidence level. I had no idea I was this social. I've interacted with so many new people since I arrived, and it's nice that I am now able to walk past people I know in the halls and say hi. 
    I don't feel so alone anymore. I have a core group of friends that I'm starting to love, and having people I can connect with in classes and clubs is new and wonderful. I'm not used to seeing my friends every day -homeschooler problems- and I love how I can now simply run into my friends, in the cafeteria or at the chapel, and just hang out with them in between classes. I spend less time texting my friends here because I can merely walk across campus to see them face-to-face.
    Who knows if these friendships will last? If what I'm doing here will impact me for better or worse? I'm leaving that up to God- I know this is where He wants me, and I have never felt His presence as strongly in my life since I came here. Being in a non-church environment has made my faith stronger- is that crazy?
    I think it's crazy. But so is adhering to faith in our postmodern society. Call me a lunatic, then.
--Laura