Mixed Emotions

As my freshman year comes to a close, I am not exactly sure how to make sense of how I am feeling. In some ways I feel like I just got here and this has all just gone by too fast, but in other ways I feel like I have known these people my whole life. I don’t think that I will ever be able to express what this year has been like for me. I have laughed, smiled, cried, studied, read more than ever before. Providence has truly opened up so many doors for me. I have had so many new experiences this year.

I...
-read through the entire Old Testament
-went to my first Broadway musical, Wicked, TWICE
-went through Jewish Awareness Week and learned about the Jewish faith
-shared a room with 3 other girls
-got my nose pierced
-saw Phantom of the Opera
-became an avid coffee drinker
-I went to Washington and spent my spring break in Lynden

I never realized how much I have been influenced by the community that I grew up in. By coming to PCC I have interacted with people that have lived in all sorts of different places, have different religious views as me, and people whose parents raised them differently. I have grown to appreciate the family and friends that God has given me. I realize that I have taken living in a small town for granted. Although there are things that still bother me about a small town, I see how much I have learned and continue to learn.

I thought that it would be impossible to move away from home and have to make new friends, find a new church, and ultimately be on my own for the first time. This task was a lot easier than I had ever imagined. I have a wonderful group of friends, an amazing church, and have learned how to cope with being on my own. I will be the first to admit that I talk to my mom all the time. I call her with every problem, praise, or heartache that I am experiencing. I still sit here and wonder how annoyed it must be to hear me call and complain all the time.

I started packing up all my stuff to go home for the summer and have realized how much I am going to miss this wonderful place. I ask those that read this to please keep me in your prayers this week as I have finals and prepare to say goodbye to some amazing people that have done so much for me this year.