First Week of College : Complete

Oh my goodness. So much has happened in this last week. In some ways, I still feel like I'm at a camp and I'm going to be going home in a few days, but then I look around at all of my belongings and pictures on the walls, and I remember that this is my home now. In fact, I was getting lunch with one of my roommates the other day, and I said "let's go home." It came out so nonchalantly that we just stopped for a second, smiled, and thought about all that that meant.

So gear up for a long post folks. If you would like to take it in stages - so be it. There is just so much that I want to share!

DORM LIFE

I absolutely love all of the people on my floor. I have met and had conversations with nearly each and every one of them already which is crazy considering that there are 35ish people living here! It is a co-ed floor and the bathroom (yes, bathroom - singular) is co-ed as well. So far, this hasn't been a big issue, and the lingering feelings of uneasiness will probably begin to disappear as we all get to know each other even better.

We keep our door open and people come in occasionally to chat :). It's been so amazing to live with other teenagers for the first time in my "only-child existence." In fact, most people at Berkeley are very friendly and approachable. I don't think I've talked to a single person yet that seemed genuinely disinterested in having a conversation.

The other night people were hanging out in the lounge playing poker, and there have been ideas going around of having floor game nights and movie nights! So exciting!

FIRST DAY OF CLASSES

This semester I'm taking English 31AC, Psychology 1, Earth Science, and Classics 10A (Intro to Greek Civilization). Thursday was the first day of class and I had Classics in the morning and Psych in the afternoon. I LOVED THEM BOTH! I was just so happy to be back in school. Completely nerdy I know. It was so cool to think that all of the kids sitting in that classroom with me had been at the top of their class in high school - very humbling.

I'm especially excited to go to my English class on Wednesday though, because I've hardly met any other English majors since I've been here! In fact, humanities majors have been quite scarce in general. I'm one of the only ones on my entire floor. We had a floor meeting the other day and when we went around and said our names and majors, it was mostly computer science, pre-med, and engineering. Crazy smart people!

Anyways, I'm just so excited to learn and Berkeley is the perfect place for that! If I learn something especially interesting, I will definitely share it in the future :).

RUSH WEEK

Ok. So I decided to rush for a sorority here at Berkeley. I had never thought of myself as being a sorority-type girl, and some of you who are reading this might be surprised as well, but since I've been going through this process I see so many positives of being in one. All of the girls that I've talked to in the last few days have been so sweet and intelligent, which quelled all of the reservations that I had in the beginning. Not to mention that most of the 13 sorority houses at Berkeley are gorgeous mansions and are higher up than the dorms which mean they have stellar views of the bay, San Francisco, the Golden Gate Bridge, etc.

Rush week began last Tuesday and it will end this coming Tuesday. Throughout the week, the list of sororities that I'm still in the running for has been slowing shrinking until it gets down to 3 on Monday night. Then we all get to dress super fancy and make our last impressions on our favorites before they make their final decisions. We shall see. If I get an offer from one of the houses that I have really grown to like, I will definitely consider joining! I will keep you guys posted!

CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY

I have been so incredibly blessed by all of the community I've found here in Berkeley. God is certainly moving on this campus! One of my first nights here, I got invited to go to a student welcome night that was being held in one of the biggest lecture halls on campus. There was a skit, worship, and a message, and the place was absolutely packed! It was amazing to look around and see so many Berkeley students praising God and praying for Him to come and bless our campus. So please be praying for this campus too. I see so many lost souls walking around and it breaks my heart, but there are also so many people here who are passionate and on fire for God!



So this has been my first major update. I hope you all have enjoyed it! If you have any more specific questions about anything I would love to answer them :). I also have received a couple letters from friends already, so if you would like to be my pen pal, I would love to keep in contact with you via old fashioned handwritten correspondence! Just let me know and I will give you my address here at school. I love you all and I hope that you are having a blessed day.

Sincerely,
Olivia