Sitting in the auditorium seats in Elkins I was pretty confident I wouldn’t hear anything I had not already heard at my last two college orientations. It is always the same thing: “Find the balance between school life and a social life … Get involved on campus … Your experience is what you make it! … These college years will fly by so take advantage of every opportunity.” Coming in as a junior transfer student I expected Pepperdine to be similar to my previous college experiences with the bonus of the ocean view. I had never really had the I-love-everything-about-my-university experience although I’d heard from my friends that was possible.
During a student panel a senior gave us his 2 cents: “Make yourself uncomfortable.” What he meant was to go out of your way to talk to someone completely opposite of you or try out for a club sport you’ve never played before. The point is to put yourself in those uncomfortable slightly awkward positions and to do it intentionally. His advice was simple in concept but hard for me to swallow. I could not stop thinking about it for the rest of the day. I decided before going to sleep on my first night at Pepperdine that I would take this advice and see where it brought me.
My first week was pretty interesting to say the least. Every time I was invited to something I went. This included Campus Ministry events dorm book clubs checking out the surf team RA info meetings and a Campus Rec ski trip. Even after I agreed to go I would question my decision. I would rationalize that I didn’t know anyone so I would feel left out or it’d be nice to get a head start on my studying. But I remembered the oath I made to myself and each time made it out the door.
Shocker: I am so thankful I did. I met some incredible people through each experience. Did I feel awkward? Yes at times. But the relationships I formed far outweighed the temporary moment of feeling uncomfortable. In the midst of these experiences and encounters I was exposed to the spiritual life of this campus. If I’m honest when I was first considering Pepperdine I heard the worst as far as how seriously Pepperdine takes its Christian name. People told me it was just a nice label that once you step on campus it’s no different than any other secular college. As someone who had just crossed the line of faith I was hesitant about how my spiritual life would look at Pepperdine. Now I don’t know if I was just lucky but the people I met the first week shattered these predisposed ideas of the Pepperdine community. They were authentic not the stereotypical Christians who appear to have it all together. No they were real people struggling with things yet clinging to God through it all. It was so refreshing and it immediately drew me in. I love that there is a mixture of faith here. I’m learning from everyone I meet wherever they are in their journey and it’s helping me solidify mine.
Pepperdine taught me a lesson I was not expecting to learn: The college experience is all about relationships. It’s the people who challenge you in your faith. It’s the professors that make the effort to get to know you as a person. It’s the seven guys or gals you live breathe and eat with. It’s the special staff mentors you find from all corners of the campus. So far I’ve been amazed at the abundance of relationships I’ve been blessed with and was absolutely not expecting; at least not after six short weeks. It’s the reason why every time someone asks me why I like Pepperdine I get to say “I love everything about my university and I mean it. My next goal is to find that senior and thank him for giving me the most unexpected and rewarding advice of my college career so far.
