I’m going to venture a guess that most of you have seen the movie The Sound of Music.  Shame on you if you haven’t.   One of my favorite scenes from the movie is when Liesl and Rolf meet under the gazebo and sing their duet.  Rolf says in one line, “I am someone older and wiser, I’ll take care of you.”  Well, I’m going steal that line from good ole Rolf.  For some of you, that’s what I am: older and wiser.  Wiser is of course a relative term.  Let’s not get into semantics.  Anyway, after three full years at Cornerstone, I think I might have a few things to share.

For all you freshmen out there, here’s your first lesson.  It’s only two words, so you should be able to remember it.  Get involved.  The end.  Seriously though, it’s a must.  College is nothing but a bunch of Thursdays strung together if you don’t.  Meet people.  Get out of your bubble.  Go to campus events.  Get involved.  They say that the friends you meet in college are the ones you have for the rest of your life- no pressure.

“Especially for your first couple of years on campus, it’s really important to get involved to establish your group of friends,” said Reagan Boomershine, junior.  “Shared experiences are vital to relationship.”

Speaking of being on campus, if at all possible, you need to live on campus for at least a year.  Yes, need.  There’s something about living in the dorms that you can’t get by just going to your classes.  Maybe it’s just that community aspect that people are always talking about. 

“Living in the dorms gives you a community to fall back on, a place to belong and a group of people to support you through thick and thin,” said Charis Cooper, senior.

by Lauren Hines

Last, but not least, don’t take a minute of any of this for granted.  Not because you’re spending money out your ears to be here, but because these really are the best days of your life.  Yeah, yeah, I’m cheesy; put me on a cracker.  But most of us will probably never be fortunate to live in a community like this again.  Take advantage of that.  Join a small group.  Find a mentor.  Do your part in the growing process.  I promise you won’t regret it.