Blog post published on the Marquette Tribune website, 11/1/11
Hello, Marquette. Welcome to November. Congratulations on making it past the mid-point of the semester. I imagine I speak for most of the student body when I say that by now, we all are probably entrenched in our activities, overwhelmed by our studies and at least a little sick of eating dorm food or attempting to cook for ourselves.
It is possible we have experienced frustrations with our roommates and are dreading the cold of winter setting in any day now. After returning from a break which seemed to end before it started, we may be starting to feel a little less enthusiastic about Marquette than we did in August.
Or maybe not.
But in my experience as a wise, old junior, I can imagine that in general, we all could use a little affirmation and rejuvenation right about now.
This weekend, I attended the 25th Marquette Experience retreat. This retreat in particular is about embracing the Marquette community around us and realizing all that it has to offer. It encouraged us participants to relax a little bit and allow the people around us to build us up.
One of the speakers on this retreat talked about the Jesuit ideal of “cura personalis,” or care for the whole person. She spoke of a time last week when she was faced with the hardest exam of her life, and she knew she needed to calm her nerves before she could take it. She texted two different people, asking one for a prayer and one for a goofy piece of encouragement. They responded to the call, and she walked into the exam elevated and ready to go.
How simply brilliant.
This person had recognized what she needed at that moment to tackle something difficult, and she used the unique gifts of her friends to help her through it. She let them exercise their roles of “friend,” and in doing so, she exhibited care for not only her whole person, but for each of them as well.
It is so easy in the hustle and bustle of our day-to-day activities to forget that our friends, our professors, our co-workers, our family, our neighbors and our classmates possess special gifts that they are willing to share if only they are called to share them. Think about it: when someone tells you they need a hug, aren’t you delighted to provide one?
As refreshing as retreat was this weekend, it helped me figure out that I do not even need to leave this 90-acre stretch of downtown Milwaukee to get rejuvenated. I need only seek a new experience like taking a different route to class or identifying a beautiful trait of a friend.
And even if you feel as though you lack these people, this sense of community at Marquette (freshmen, I’ve been there, I understand), you are never actually alone.
One of the hilariously beautiful things about Americans in general and Midwesterners in particular is their love of all things optimistic. Why else would silly YouTube videos such as “Jessica’s Daily Affirmation” and “Thumbs Up for Rock and Roll” have a combined viewer count of over 12 million? (If you haven’t seen these, get to the nearest computer and watch them now.)
My point is, most people on this campus cherish human connection and enjoy supporting the people around them, even strangers.
Challenge yourself to smile at a random person on the way to class, or start a conversation with the kid waiting in line in front of you at Marquette Place. Maybe it’ll be awkward, but maybe it won’t be. If you see someone wearing a Cardinals hat, talk about how happy you are that they won the World Series (shameless St. Louis plug, I can’t help myself).
One of my favorite lines of poetry is by David Whyte in a poem called “Everything is Waiting for You.” It reads, “The kettle is singing even as it pours you a drink.” The world is alive around us, and it is ours to embrace.
Notice it. Smile at it. Love it.
And let yourself be rejuvenated.
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