Carleigh's Corner

Freshman Year Words

I like looking back, savoring the past and anticipating the future. Frequently I have been asked, "how was your first year of college?' That is extremely hard to sum up in words. But here are a few that will attempt to try.

Growth. They say college is a time of growth. Really, any season in your life is a time of growth, if you make it one. This year has been a season of growth and change, becoming more aware of God, the world, and myself.

Here is Home. When you leave home, you realize how much it means to you. Leaving my church family, my immediate family, my close friends was hard. A light-blue room shared with a sister was exchanged for a white cinder-block room and an unfamiliar P-W3. The wonderful thing was that slowly, creeping in, CCC became home as well. Naples is home, but school is home as well, which is a beautiful dissonance.

Study, Study. You go to college to get an education, to broaden horizons, to be exposed to new ideas. I am very thankful to go to a school that gives me a liberal-arts education, has a faculty that cares for their students, and pushes me to learn, in the full sense of the word. I genuinely enjoyed all of my classes that I took this year, which is a great privilege. They required memorization, they required work, a fair share of late nights and some early mornings. It was valuable because I had the opportunity to exchange ideas with a community of learners, learn from instructors that are skilled in their subject area, and reflect and apply the information to my own life. I am excited for the future; another year to learn new things, reflect on them and work well.

Plans Change. Some advice that is very commonly tossed around is 'you have time to decide your major'. Because I started school with transfer credits, fully intending to finish school in three years, I genuinely believed I could not change anything. But happily, I was shown otherwise. You might change a minor. I did (I added Music, and could not be more excited about that choice). You may contemplate changing your major. It's okay. If you already know what you are passionate about and skilled in, that's wonderful. But if not, it's all right. Allow God to show you His good plans for you, which will often call for a rearranging of yours.

January 8th Turned My World Upside-Down. There is a lot I could say about this one. But it will be brief. The long and short of it is, that Wednesday I found out, through blood lab results, that I had a chronic illness. Not something I expected to hear, to put it mildly. The collection of the next few days included an ER visit, turbulent thoughts, missed classes, and a doctor appointment. The diagnosis was diabetes. Though this definitely changed my semester, it ultimately changed my life. It made me realize I do not have control. It made me realize that I need to take careful care of my body. It made me realize that when I am weak, He is strong (2 Cor. 12:8-10). Right now I am on insulin injections, monitoring my blood-glucose level regularly and overall doing better. However, it is a continuous challenge, both good and difficult, and I would so appreciate your continued prayers. Though it is something unexpected and unchosen, God has given it to me and continues to use it for His glory and my good. It has brought many blessings into my life and He continues to give daily grace.
Adventures, Small & Large
Hilarious and wonderful things happen at school. They are not limited to dying Easter eggs at 2 in the morning, all sorts of crazy discussions with the lovely ladies of Unit W, getting horribly lost whenever I tried to drive somewhere distant, giving myself a large dose of the wrong medicine (do. not. do. that.), talking with friends for five hours straight about nothing and everything, conducting the orchestra, dislocating my poor friend's toe on a wild and muddy dash across the soccer field, impromptu attending concerts, retreating to the bookstore for an entire day of solitude, exploring near and far, and generally enjoying new things.
He is Faithful.
God's great faithfulness and sovereignty was seen. He was faithful to place me at a school, to surround me with people who love, teach and support, to place my family close when I needed them. He was faithful to bring new days. He was faithful to give me a church body to grow with, grace when days were hard, a peace that endures, provision in work and finances, motivation to read the Word, calm when I was sad, people to share the Gospel with, people to invest in, and people who invested selflessly in me. "But let all who take refuge in you rejoice, let them ever sing of joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you. For you bless the righteous, O LORD; you cover him with favor as with a shield." {Psalm 5:11-12}.