Alumni

Every Quarter, my alma mater send me their alumni magazine "The Spark" (for all of you non CRCer's this is Calvin College). I always read it (or skim it) and spend some time in the back seeing what other alumni are up to. Last night I got my winter edition and as I thumbed through it I realized I just did not identify with anything in there. After reading the first half I felt all they wanted was my money. After reading the second half I realized I might be only one of a few people not carrying around a statue of John Calvin with me all over the world. ( So all of that may be a huge exaggeration, but you get the point)

Then I made the mistake of being a tiny bit negative on Facebook about Calvin and people got a little defensive...I am not saying it is bad or wrong, I am just saying it is not me.

As a status is not enough to explain, I figured I would try here. Maybe some of you will identify with my growth and world view changes....

As a very sheltered, not very book smart, shy and did I say sheltered 18 year old, I made the choice to go to Calvin College. This college has a great reputation and happened to be about 5 minutes away from the home I grew up in. It also is affiliated with the denomination I grew up in (CRC). Now, at this point in my life, my only focus was to save the world, get married and have babies. I figured Calvin could do all that for me. I also wanted to save the world from my comfy home in West MI. I also did not know there were other denominations besides CRC (Really, I am serious here... I met a Lutheran on my first day and was shocked!)

I also mentioned my lack of book smarts. (I know faithful readers you are shocked by this as I have a Master's Degree!!!!) I was a straight C student in high school with an occasional B and D to balance things out. I did horrible on standardized tests, never figured out math despite major tutoring and could not dribble a basketball to save my life. Calvin cared more about the whole me than just grades.

And then the shy part... I was a HUGE nerd in high school, was never going to parties or dances or dates or football games. I never talked during class and did no extra-curricular activities. It was just too much anxiety! So a smaller school that I knew others was a good option.

So fast forward 4 years, I got my Social Work degree, I met my husband, I made a few friends, and despite almost dropping out Freshman year due to educations stress and lack of friends, I made it. I think I did make it because I was close to home and the environment at school was familiar.

Now 12 years later, I am a totally different person. I converted to RCA ( I know scandal! And really actually could care less about all this denominational crap. I just want to love God, live a good life and forget the bureaucracy of it all. I do not think Calvinism is IT. I think it is one way people understand religion. I enjoy learning about other's perspectives on faith and I think it is fair to say mine is pretty obscure in this next of the woods.

Now I like to be around diverse situations, diverse people, diverse ways of thinking. I enjoy being a minority in all of these things. I like to be challenged by others, learn from them and if needed defend my own beliefs.

I hate that I will be paying back student loans until my kids are in College themselves.

I don't like that I did not get to see more of the world, live in other places or be challenged to think outside my little world.

But was I ready for that at 20? Would I have made different life choices? Would I have failed miserable and headed back home never to graduate at all? Who knows! What I know now is I am a very different person that I was back then. I love w here I am now and if I can not be in Africa or Haiti or India or NYC, I am glad to be doing what I am doing with the people I love. In 10 years I may have an entire different world view. I may have tried more new things, met more new people and have a whole new outlook. Maybe I will even be Lutheran by then!