Getting Oriented

One of the first things you have to go through at college is, of course, orientation. Here you get to walk around the campus in 85 degree weather, listen to people give you information you already got from the literature they sent to their prospective students, and even learn some valuable things and meet new people. And, of course, you get bottled water with your lunch. Water bottles are a good thing to have when you live in a dorm with no sink. Here, orientation is a three-day event, concluding tonight with a huge campus activity/dance.

When orientation first started, I was fairly pensive. On my way to the first meeting, I passed one of the student volunteers--upperclassmen who help with new student orientation. He was asking random people in the crowd, "Do you know where you're going?" I was still an emotional wreck from having my world uprooted, so I decided to take the question out of context. I wanted to ask something along the line of, "Do you mean physically, emotionally, spiritually, socially, educationally, economically, or metaphysically?" I just kept quiet. It didn't really matter which he meant, though, because my honest answer is still "No, I do not."

Not knowing where I'm going generally freaks me out.

I've had time to calm down, to look around me, to find out what I'm doing here. I still have absolutely no idea where I'm going, but I'm less panicked about that. Everything I've seen since then tells me that this is where I'm meant to be. My roommate is someone with whom I can get on wonderfully, the campus is already starting to feel like home, my schedule is alright, and the very focus of the school feels like what I've been looking for. I've finally found out what I'm supposed to be doing, and that knowledge is the best thing I can have right now.

I'm finally getting it. When we all came to this place called Earth, we were given a vague idea of where we'd end up. Very vague--it's definitely not enough to get us there. But we were also each given a path, and we don't know how that path gets us to our destination, but we know it does. The important thing is to just keep moving, and trust the pathbuilder, because He's a lot smarter than we are.

So, thanks to all of you who have been pounding that into my head. It's finally sinking in.

You guys are the greatest! :)