A Few More Weeks Left!

Amidst all the paper writing, late night library cramming and exam prep, free time becomes a rare luxury. None the less, there are always a few signs of people enjoying themselves around the Redeemer campus. Radios are playing, baseballs are being tossed, a guitar or two is being strummed, people are lounging around on blankets outside. I saw someone barbecuing the other day. Summer is tantalizingly close! If there is ever a time when I miss living on campus, it’s when spring time rolls around. It’s kind of a shame that dorm dwellers can only bask in the greatness of this warm weather for a few short weeks.

Seeing as it is nearing the end of the year and all, I’d like to take a moment and write something for any of the future first year students who will be attending Redeemer next fall. So here it is – a few (hopefully helpful) tips for your first year at Redeemer:

· Go to coffee house – the sense of community that this weekly event builds is fabulous! By third year (when you live off campus) attending coffee house can become almost impossible (due to the location, or school work) so take advantage of it while you are on campus.

· Go to CITB – Nobody can force you into loving the worship style (in fact for some, it may not be their cup of tea) but I truly think that everyone can take away something from CITB, even if it is just the guest speaker/message, a certain song that is pertinent to your walk with God, or a word of prayer.

· Go to the writing Centre. (ok, ok, so I do kinda work there -- shameless plug I know), but we don’t just edit your grammar mistakes. We care about your ideas, the structure of your essay and we want to help you express yourself with clarity and confidence on paper!

· Go to chapel -- Nine out ten times I walk away with the “that was just what I needed to get myself through the week” feeling.

· Go to art gallery openings! Also, check out Redeemer’s theatre productions. You will not be disappointed!

· Get involved in the city of Hamilton -- Check out the Freeway Cafe, the Art Crawl on James Street North or the various multicultural restaurants hiding in the city. Thai Memory makes wonderful Thai food. You should try it!

· Consider joining Kids Club or Living Rock. These are good ways to meet people and get out of suburbia. There is such a need for student involvement in the city of Hamilton.

· Stay up till 4 in the morning for no reason at all. You are in your first year and can get away with stuff like that. Enjoy it while you can!

Papers, Mario Kart & serving God

This week here at Redeemer has been a busy week for all. Many are trying to get papers done, studying for quizzes, and doing big projects. I finished my History and my English paper this week, thanks to the Writing Centre for editing my papers. The Writing Centre here is a real blessing. It is a place where students can go to get help on assignments and to learn how to properly write papers in the proper format (formats like MLA, Chicago Style, etc.) and to get papers edited.

In my dorm this week we have had two significant events. This past Tuesday, November 25, we celebrated Dorm Christmas. We had decided as a dorm to celebrate Christmas a full month early because we won't be here on the actual Christmas day. We did a secret santa gift exchange, each guy spending 10-15 dollars on their person, just something fun and it was a bonding time. We had a sweet dinner and then when 10:30 came around we had the other significant event. Mario Kart Tournament. It can't get any better. We had an awesome time playing an organized tournament with our dorm with the winner signing the T-shirt that my RA's RA had in first year. This tournament a 1st year student took the win. It was sweet!

On Wednesday I had the opportunity to organize dorm devotions. I did devotions on the topic of 'Serving'. I have found lately that I would love to be more involved in the community at Redeemer and in Ancaster and Hamilton. According to God, we have no excuse not to follow the call of serving. So right now, I am praying and waiting for God to show me where I am to serve. I know that I can make a difference in this community with God on my side!