Falcon Footnotes

As the semester begins to draw to a close there is a lot that needs to be done.  Projects need finished, textbooks need read, tests need to be studied for, and it is important to remember that every now and then it is alright to take a break.  At Messiah we have a tradition that helps us relax, just a few miles up the road there is a little diner called Bakers and it is open 24 hours a day.  More than once after a long study session my friends and I have decided that a late night snack is just the thing to relax us.  The staff at Bakers actually expect to see Messiah students after the witching hour.  There are all sorts of great food and the best part is that it’s inexpensive, which is a major bonus for us college students who have no money.  So if you choose Messiah you also need to make sure you make at least one relaxing trip to Bakers.

Well the season to register for next semester’s classes.  About this time, early November, we all begin to search for what classes we will need and we also spend a good deal of time trying to organize a schedule that we can live with.  Being a senior is nice on a couple counts.  First of all, we get to register first, so all the classes are available.  Second most of my requirements have been completed, in fact my schedule next semester has one J-term class and two classes for Spring Semester and my Honor’s research project.  In other words I am going to have a lot of free time (which will hopefully be spent working).

One of the best pieces I can offer as a graduating senior to incoming freshmen is take the time to seriously plan for the classes you will take.  It really helped for me to buckle down and take 18 credits for several semesters, because now that I am on my way out I have free time to look at grad schools and living arrangements for next year.  Take the time to talk with your adviser and work out a schedule for all four years if you can and try to make things easier your senior year.  I promise you won’t regret it!

About a week ago, things were looking pretty bleak.  Projects, tests, readings, papers, and the like were piling up.  It seemed like the end of the line for us students.  However Monday morning brought the light at the end of the tunnel, Wednesday afternoon marked the start of Fall Break.  Fall Break is a glorious 5 day vacation that allows students a much needed rest and time to relax.

My fall break was filled with a ton of activities.  I got to go out to lunch with my mom.  I did a good deal of car work, my car needed oil changed and my fiancee had several issues with her car that we tackled over the break.  I also got to work on prepping a house for installing new siding.  My favorite part though was taking time to harken back to my younger years.  For two years now my fiancee and I go up to her house over the fall break and carve pumpkins with her family.

Fall break is a great respite for students, we come back to Messiah ready to handle another month of work before the next break arrives.  It is a time for catching up with family, relaxing, sleeping in, and playing games.  I really enjoyed the break this year, but am already looking forward to Thanksgiving break!

Finally it has arrived, my senior year is officially begun!  To many of you reading this you are also experiencing the same joy that I am since you are seniors in high school.  However this joy is also laced with sadness.  Messiah has become my home and my friends and roommates have become like brothers and sisters, while my bosses and professors have become close mentors and even parent figures in my life.  Leaving Messiah will be nearly as hard as leaving my parents and siblings 4 years ago when I came to Messiah. 

So why do I share this with you?  Well I think it is important to know and understand that Messiah offers an atmosphere that is warm, caring, and welcoming to all.  Professors genuinely care about how you are doing, not only in their class, but also in other classes.  They also want to know how things are going outside of the academic world.  In talking to one of my professors this semester we spent more time actually talking about our summers then we did about the project I had gone to see her about.

If you chose to do a workstudy, as I did, you will also find that your boss(es) will also be very caring and involved in your life.  This past week I have been studying for the LSAT, a standarized test for law school applicants, and every day that I have been to work my boss has asked me about the studying and whether or not I am keeping up with my other homework. 

If you chose to come to Messiah you will find that your not leaving your own family so much as you are entering the family that is Messiah College.  And this family welcomes you with open arms.  The relationships you forge here will last you a lifetime and the four (or maybe five) years you spend here are worth more than words can express.

This summer has been my first summer that I did not live at home, instead I chose to live on campus and work for the Admissions office.  Throughout my time here, especially this summer, I have realized that Messiah has become my home away from home.

The biggest reason is the atmosphere and the people on campus.  No matter what time of year or time of day you can always find a friendly face on campus.  As I have spent my afternoons and evenings calling prospective students and telling them about Messiah I have realized that the atmosphere here really does make a major difference.  It is hard to put words to the hospitality and friendliness that you will experience on this campus.  I feel at home here on campus and its due largely to the hospitality and friendliness that students, faculty and staff are all exuding when they interact with you.

As you continue searching for a college, I highly encourage you to make those campus visits.  Any school can sound good online or in brochures, but it is well worth a few days to check out the colleges you are interested in and see if the atmosphere on campus is appealing to you.

There is a beautiful creek that runs through the campus called the Yellow Breeches.  One long standing tradition at Messiah is that of “creeking”.  Creeking is traditionally done on your birthday, if you have any friends who are particularly mischievous they will take you down to the creek and toss you in…willing or not!  On my birthday, sophomore year, they decided that I was to be creeked.  So my girlfriend, my roommate and several others took me down to the creek and I went for an unplanned swim.  Fortunately it was a nice warm day, so it was actually a lot of fun.  Since that first creeking I have participated in at least a dozen other creekings and of course have been tossed in myself another time.  The Yellow Breeches is one of my favorite places at Messiah, it can be a peaceful retreat, a fun picnic site, a swimming hole and so much more.  Make sure to visit the Breeches when you come to campus!

A great way to end an especially academically difficult day is by heading over to the Union and ordering a great meal.  One of my  favorites is a Buffalo Chicken sandwich with a heap of fresh fries, topped off with a large Root Beer.  While Lottie provides a great selection of food every day it is sometimes nice to get a meal that is specifically hand prepared for you.  Unlike Lottie meals the Union food can be made “to go” and you can take the meal back to your room.  The Union is always a favorite hang-out complete with Dish Network TV, two pool tables and a fooseball table.  So whether you are in a hurry and need a meal on the go or if you want to relax with friends and play a game, the Union is definitely the place to go!

My passion has long been to pursue a career in law, but I wasn’t exactly sure in what I wanted to earn my undergraduate degree.  When I came to Messiah for an Open House the Pre-Law advisor told me I should major in something that I would really find interesting.  So I quickly settled on Criminal Justice.  One of the things I really like about Messiah’s CJ program is that we have a focus on restorative justice.  Too often in our society the mentality behind crime is that the offenders should be locked away and the key thrown into an abyss.  Restorative justice has a much different mindset, crime is seen as an offense against society.  That offense should be repaired by bringing both the criminal and the victim back into wholeness with the community.  This is a mindset that I have really enjoyed learning under and I know that it will greatly aid me as I continue to pursue my legal career.

As you continue your college search I encourage you to look for not only a college that provides the major you are interested in, but I also encourage you to seek out a learning environment that will best suit your future plans.

My First Year Seminar (FYS) was titled “Learning to Tell Our Stories” a class that focused on writing, specifically personal narrative writing.  The professor, Dr. Hughes and his wife Jan would often co-teach.  They both made us all feel welcome and we never conducted class in a typical set-up, we would always move the chairs around so we were in a close circle.  With the professor and his wife there was only 15 of us in the classroom so we quickly became a close group.  One of the assignments we received for the class was to write a personal narrative about something exciting that had occurred in our life.  I chose to write mine on an experience as an actor in my high school’s Indoor Percussion Unit.  My senior year the Indoor team decided to do a Pirates of the Caribbean theme and I was to play the part of Captain Jack Sparrow.  I had a great costume and a fantastic sword.

The week before we were to bring the papers to class Dr. Hughes suggested that we all come prepared to read our papers for the class.  I quickly decided that I would be again dressing up as Captain Jack Sparrow, so I went home over the weekend and retrieved my costume and come Tuesday afternoon I strode across campus and into the classroom dressed in full pirate regalia.  Everyone in the class including Dr. Hughes and Jan enjoyed the costume and my story.  This will forever be one of my most favorite memories from my FYS.

My first week at Messiah was an explosion of sensations, thoughts, and activities.  I still remember the first day as my parents helped to get me into my dorm.  That day I met my roommate, my first RA, and my other floormates.  That night was the candlelight service and then before I knew it I was on my own at college (that may be a super scary thought for some of you, but I am here to tell you it was awesome!).  The next several days I spent bonding with my roommate and my peer group.  We did all sorts of activities, but one of my favorites was the First Year Games.

The First Year Games is a time when the different first-year dorms compete in a variety of different games.   Everyone wears their dorm’s color (Witmer – Red, Hess – Green and Naugle – Blue).  My favorite game was blob tag!  Welcome Week will always remain a great memory from my college experience and I know that you all will definitely enjoy that first week of orientation (and all the weeks that follow!)