The Bluffton Life! :)

It has been two days since I've posted online. My last post was filled with a lot of thing, I now dont know what to write. Yesterday was Monday, which seems to mean that after a wonderful weekend classes are back and running. From reading to quizzes this week seems to be even busier. Now Profs are getting close to quizing us and are feeling comfortable in classes to open up discussions and go over the reading less. (because we are supposed to read it on our own) Monday's are one of my busiest days. I have 4 classes. One is a night class. This is for 2 hours and 45 minutes but only once a week. I enjoy the class so far but sitting for almost 3 hours is somewhat crazy. -- After night class, we had Bulk Bingo. This event was so fun because the prizes were bulk food from Sam's club. A lot of people showed up and it was my very first event. (I am currently on MCB) People had a lot of fun with this. Whether it was yelling out Bingo or searching for the correct number. I was very proud! :)
After Bingo was homework time. I sat on my futon reading for classes, and getting ready for today.
Tuesday. hmmm. I had my first field trip for class today. For Human Behavior and Social Environment we traveled to the local hospital to learn more about babies. I need to take this class for my Social Work major. We learned about birthing and differnent medicine used. In the end they brought in a baby born on Monday. SOOO CUTE!! After class we had Forum. This happend every Tuesday at 11am. We have different speakers come in and discuss a topic that is familar for them. Today we actually had our President of the Univeristy give his Univeristy Forum Address. It discussed the environment of Bluffton and how our campus actually formed into what it is today. It is so different to think about the campus being any different back when it was founded than what it is today. Not having all of the trees or buildings. This campus is so beautiful now and learning that it was different then suprises me.

Whether it be through activities on campus or just the beauty of it, it is very worth while! :)

Relax!!

So there are always days that we feel totally drained. There are days when we just need someone to come and take away that stress. I have been so lucky this weekend to have people do that for me! :) This past week I have been so busy. Whether it be with classes, meetings, or homework, I have barely had time to think. Finally when the weekend showed up I was so happy to be able to breathe. It was a weekend filled with laughter, sleep, and lots of hugs!
Friday night MCB (campus activities) held their first MAD event. (Marbeck After Dark.) This week it was a Dutch Blitz tournament. My best friend from Bluffton and I entered this tournament with very high hopes for ourselves. We thought that we would win the whole tournament. Spending a Friday night screaming "Blitz" was going to be the best. Well we actually didn't win but technically we would have been in 5th place. (This was out of 32 teams) We still had a lot of fun!!
Saturday. Rainy. Yuck. Three words that make me smile still to this day! At home I have been blessed with two of the bestest friends I could have asked for. The only problem is that they dont live at Bluffton. So on Saturday I had two visitors!! They showed up and the fun began. I was able to introduce them to all of my "Bluffton Friends" and we were able to relax. This was a time for each of us to catch up on our lives and relax together. Playing ping pong in Bob's Place, or touring the campus we were able to keep ourselves busy. :) It was so fun to be able to enjoy two of my best friends company and in my familiar setting of Bluffton!



On Sunday, I went to church with Hannah. We have been going to Bluffton Baptist which is downtown. This church has made us feel very at home in Bluffton. We are welcomed by the members and feel very free to worship with them. This has been something very important in my life the past few days. Making a connection in a church away from home allowed me to feel comfortable!! After church my parents made an impromtu trip to Bluffton. This meant a free meal outside of Marbeck!! We were able to catch up on what is happening at home and eat Mexican Food (from the new place downtown)- We also got takeout and came back to watch football! This was a time for fellowship together! (the Browns lost by the way) :( But seeing family and friends this weekend was something that was able to take away my stress. I was able to smile, hug, and laugh with some of the people that I love! :)
Bluffton is a very good place and sharing it with people I love makes it even better! :)
Enjoy the beauty of each day!! (Friday night we saw a rainbow after all of the rain. It wasnt this picture.. but it reminded me of it!)

God Bless,
Anna

Back for More...

So the new school year has started. Wow! Summer went by so quickly. After battling the flood waters, move in day, and every other activity planned for the first years everything seemed to go by smoothly. So smoothly that it is already the 2nd week of class. CRAZY!~ This year I am living in the "theme housing" in Riley Court. I am lucky enough to live with 14 of the best girl friends ever! :) But enough about that.

I am the co-coordinator of our Music Ministry Team on Campus. This is one of the best things that I could have ever been a part of. I am able to be involved on campus and I am able to worship God with my friends. The one stressful thing about this group is that this year I have to be the one to pick and choose who I think should make the team and who shouldn't. THIS IS CRAZY! I love the job! I love what I am doing, but how can I tell someone ...Sorry, but we cant accept you.!~ Well right now this is my struggle. Tomorrow are try-outs and they find out next week whether they make it or not. It has been a very stressful week with more to come I am very sure. Tonight MCB (a student lead organization) put on a concert with the group Inner City All Stars. This was a time to listen to different cultures of music, different styles, and dance the night away. And I did dance. My feet will feel the outcome tomorrow.! :) This was such a good oppourtunity to come together with friends and new students to hang out!!! It seemed kind of gross to dance on a gym floor sweating in the heat with a bunch of friends, but it is something that I will remember for a long time! That is what matters to me, is that Bluffton provides an oppourtunity to make memories and to take pictures and to become your own person! It is a place to run through waist high water to protect a science building from flooding, and a place to walk to classes.


If you have ever heard of the song, "Everybody has a laughing place" --Bluffton is my laughing place! And being able to share it with people and the experiences make me even happier! :)

So after having a stressful day and getting to dance it all away I am able to realize that things will work out. So for tonight.. I will relax with a cup of coffee and fall asleep to the sound of the TV. :)
Happy Tuesday!!!
GodBless,
Anna

Cooking, best friend, fun?.. yes please!!

FINALS. A word that I will forever make a face at. It is finally the end of the year and it is time to study. But thinking about it.. finals week is also the best time of the year as well! You dont go to class and have at the most 2 finals a day. So you can basically study for 3 hours and then do whatever the rest of the day! For example today I woke up at 11:00 (ish) and then studied after lunch and now I am bored out of my mind. But it was a great day!!! There are very few times in which you can get enough down time. But when you do.. oh man it is amazing!!


Last night was the beginning of our last weekend. What to do?? hmmm well. Hannah and I decided to make our own dinner. We drove to Community Market and bought chicken, pasta, veggies and decided we deserved something other than Marbeck. It was a "date night" for best friends!! We laughed and danced and just sat down for some good girl time! This was a big relief and very stress-less. Which is a good thing when thinking about the week that I am about to endure! ;) After that we went downstairs in the lobby around 10 and watched some friends play trivial pursuit. This was the fastest game of trivial pursuit that i have ever seen. It was done in about an hour. Soon after we all just sat and played cards until around 2 am. It was a hard core game night! :) Such a good night to spend with friends! This weekend is almost over and exams are about to start. The ending outcome of this next week is going to be summer at home. Thinking about home I cant imagine 3 months without the people that I have lived with for the past 8 months. It is going to be an adjustment but it is going to be some good time to rest!!

There is a book that I got before graduation... it was called Oh the Places You'll Go-
Whenever things get stressful, i know what is going on in my brain. I just need to take a time to breath. The best thing is that Bluffton has given me a person to breath with. I have found my best friend here! This is the best feeling ever!


Well.. Finals.. here I come!~
GodBless
Anna

Rain Rain... go away!! :)

Well. I sit in my room in between my classes on Wednesday and think to myself- School is almost over.!! WHAT?! I just got here. I just met new people and settled into my room and NOW i have to go back through and pick it all up??? Excuse me? Time goes by so quickly while being here all year. (that rhymes) hehe. I can remember the first night that I slept in my bed..and had an early morning fire alarm..(on accident), but anyway I just cant believe that school has come and gone so quickly! In this post.. i will reflect on what i love about this place..
The first time i stepped foot on this campus I fell in love. I fell in love with this place and all the beauty. I fell in love with my friends that I live with and fell in love with being a college student. This is basically the best thing that I could have ever done. This place has so many memories and life!! How can someone not love it?! Bluffton is filled with beauty and everytime I think about it I smile! :D

On the other note. School is almost ending which means seniors are graduating.. This also brings the thought of MayDay. A huge tradition at Bluffton that alllows for many different first year students to be May Pole Dancers. This year.. my best friend (who just got her hair cut, very very short) and I were chosen to be dancers! This is an honor for a lot of people. We basically just dance around a pole in colorful outfits but it is so much fun!! :D The picture is from last year.. but the costumes are the same!!


This week is so busy but eventful!! It has been such a great year.!
-God Bless-
Anna

mmm Spring!! :D

When thinking about Spring I immeditely smile. The sun shining, birds singing and most of all spending the days outside in the sunshine. That is what has been happening all weekend.... sunshine.. finally!
As I walk out of my dorm I see kites flying, friends laying outside doing homework, and people passing by on bikes, rollerblades, or even just walking. This is how i know it is spring outside. Classes seem to pass by a little faster and free time is always spent outside. =)
The beauty of this campus just takes my breath away.
------
Enough about spring. Classes have picked up since Spring Break and soon it will be Easter break. WOW has time gone by. It just seems like yesterday when I was packing up to move to Bluffton and in 5 weeks or so I will be moving home for the summer. So much has happened that I will be able to look back on and remember for ever. Nights that friends just stayed up talking, singing to no music while walking down the snowy streets, the Blizzard of 07', Homecoming, Retreats, and just meeting new people. How could anything get any cooler?
This past weekend is one that will be remembered as well. Lil Sibs weekend. Unfortunately I am the little sib, but I still got to hang out with my friends brothers.! and coming from an all girls house..this was interesting. I had to adjust to playstation and basketball... something that wasnt very frequent in our house as a child. This weekend was filled with events for the siblings but also us without them too. Friday night.. Live Band Karoke.. SWEET! One word to describe it. Sooo much fun and a lot of laughter. :D Saturday they had a lot of games and a rock wall. They just seemed to plan everything around these siblings. This is also a time to actuallly show the little brother or sister that school can be cool. This past weekend I heard so many....
"You live with your friends? and hang out all the time?? this is so cool"
"Yes, Stephen.. college is cool!"
So after a long weekend it is back to classes... but it is also.... one day closer to summer... and another day that can be spent in the Sunshine!! :D


Happy March.- it is almost over!-
God Bless
Anna

silence

Wow. what to say after the past two weeks for mayhem. Bluffton has been a campus that was small, and out of the limelight. All of this change in the past weeks and I personally dont know how to react.

March 2 is a day that will forever be a part of my life. I was sleeping in because I didnt have class until 9. My cell phone rings.. and rings.. Me, being a "college student" wanted all the sleep I could get, didnt answer it. The last day before Spring Break was supposed to be a quick one. Who knew that I was going to seem like days before I went home. I check my voicemail before my alarm went off because I was afraid that I wasnt going to have a ride home. I was worried more about myself than anything else. What was I going to do? It was then when I learned about the accident. That is when I realized that this campus was forever going to be changed.
Media swarmed the Bluffton area and students became confused. A Bus? Baseball? what was happening?
One day before break the worst happened and I couldnt do anything about it. My tests were cancelled and my ride wasnt coming until 3. I waited for hours.. hours.. until I could go home.. get away from this pain. Every channel in the dorms were tuned in on the news and every eye was wet. Now looking back on it.. that day was a time for emotions.. and they very much got the best of me.

Coming back to a place where such a tragedy happened is yet another emotional roller coaster. Bluffton being as small as it is, has a lot of spirit. Personally this was the first time i didnt want to come back to Bluffton. It isnt the campus that I didnt want to see nor my friends.. it was the tragedy that I didnt want to accept. My transition was very smoothly though. Driving into campus I saw purple ribbons, well wishes, and prayers that were posted everywhere. This was something that helped me get through my day.

Is it hard? Yes. I walk across campus and see faces of sorrow, I see a memorial within our commons, and a prayer room that is always open. This shouldnt happen to anyone, but I know that Bluffton can handle it. Is it something that we should have to handle.. no, but we do. I am relying on friends, family, and this campus to comeback from this event. It is something that will forever be remembered. Something that has taken 7 lives and left marks, but now we must come together and fight back. We need to work as a community to mourn together. That is what Bluffton does.. it mourns together, celebrates together and hurts together. And I get to be a part of this togetherness. This is what i love.