Peace Be With You

I have been feeling stressed lately, more than I have felt in a while. The stressors I'm experiencing aren't ones that quickly pass through - they build and require some stamina. My body has been showing signs of it - some weight loss, breaking out, sore throat, sore legs, and emotional exhaustion. I can't help but wish to disengage and hope everything will pass (which of course, will not be helpful). I have been trying to figure out what I need to get through it all. Support, rest, and most of all, peace.

When I started this blog, I ended my first post with "Peace!" because I had no idea how to end a post. But as time has passed, I'm glad I finished that first post with such a word. It has come to represent so much in my life. Peace is what I have discovered is most helpful in stressful situations. In my class on Buddhism, it was one of the main focuses - to center myself and find peace within me. I have discovered peace is best when found in myself. It is true and honest to me and I know it stems from something I believe in, although I may never find what that is. I guess one could call it my "true self" but to me, I am always changing. The one thing that stays constant is peace found within myself.

Life has been loud lately. The political ads, the campaign calls, and the debates between everyone. Being on a campus where politics is pretty central, it gets extremely loud. I loved participating in the politics and developing my own voice, but right now, I'm glad to have some silence and most of all, peace. Maybe that is what will connect us all in the end - peace. The idea of peace everyone agrees about. Conflict may be necessary, but what is the point of conflict if there is no goal of peace?

Today, I am going to find peace in me. I am going to see peace in others and find some common ground. I believe we all have it - we just need to see it once again.

Peace.

-Nicole

Leap of Faith

1. Jumping off telephone poles is actually kinda fun.
2. Know your limits.
3. Remember that there are always people who support you.

Hey! This is Malyn, and I’m super excited that this is my first post!

Last weekend I went with the Campus Ministry Commission to do a high ropes course, as a team building exercise.  Now, you may be thinking that sounds like fun, but I went to one back in seventh grade - with the entire class. At that time I was not only afraid of heights but had terrible balance, and it was the most humiliating and embarrassing thing I’d ever done.

So when I heard that CMC would be going to do high ropes, I was naturally a bit terrified.

But I went anyway, and realized that because I was with an entirely supportive and nonjudgmental group, it was so much easier.  They realized that I wasn’t weak or dumb, and that I simply had different strengths.  When I was unable to continue at one point, they accepted it – and so did I.  In seventh grade, I had forced myself to do parts of the course that I knew were terrifying for me, and that led to an emotional breakdown 30 feet off the ground.  This time, I knew my limits and that some things just weren’t meant to be.

At the end, we climbed up a telephone pole – and jumped off.  It was a beautiful moment for me, knowing that I COULD do what I thought I couldn’t, and knowing that everyone below was as happy for me as I was.

This year, as I dive into the political world (my major!) I will remember that it’s okay to not always be on top of things, and that sometimes all there is to do is take a giant leap of faith – literal or metaphorical.

Peace, and have a fabulous week!

-Malyn