To Future Torch Bearers

By Patara Williams

To: Torch Bearers

RE: A Treasure

As I look forward to graduation, I glance in my rear view and see four wonderful years completed.

I have gleaned wisdom from wonderful friends, impeccable professors and loving citizens from this very community. Not to mention the fact that I did so at one of the most beautiful institutions on the Earth. These days will never be duplicated. My undergraduate time has come to a close.

Here is my plea to you:

Whatever you do, do not forsake any of it. Don’t miss the little things, like free meals on the Quad. Definitely don’t miss the big things like Homecoming. Most importantly, don’t miss the crucial things, like building life-long relationships.

Yes, academics are important, but at the end of the day…the most valuable thing that you’ll receive from this institution may not come from a diploma tube.

I’m different…totally different from who I was when I walked into the doors of Baylor University four years ago.

I can study. I have mastered my major. I can hold a conversation with a stranger. I can manage my time and money. My faith is stronger. I’m fearless. I’m devout. I know what I believe and why I believe it. I could keep going because the lessons are innumerable.

Simply said, I’m thankful for the opportunity I have had to embrace a legacy and leave one along the way. For those that come after me, please continue the legacy and carry the torch with much grace.

Thank you Baylor University.

Sic ‘Em Bears.

Patara Williams

Not the End, but Only a Beginning

By Kilani Ju

As the semester comes down to its final weeks, so does my time here at Baylor. This month, I will be officially graduating from Baylor University. To say the word “graduating” still leaves me speechless. I remember as if it were yesterday…I was walking around campus for the first time, envisioning life as a Baylor student. Now, I walk around campus trying to soak in every moment I can. The little things I rarely noticed on a daily basis have my fullest attention now. Whether it’s simply taking a run around campus or eating lunch outside the SUB, I try to enjoy every day as much as I can. Looking back on my Baylor experience, I grew enormously as a person and experienced so many things I hadn’t experienced before, such as living on my own out of state.

Although I’m sad that I will be closing this chapter in my life, I know this is only the beginning. Finishing school is terrifying, but I’m excited and anxious to see where life takes me next. After graduation, I will be moving back to California and working while taking some time to figure out my next plan of action. I know for some it’s not ideally what you hope for after graduation (having a break), but I know there are others who will feel exactly how I feel—burnt out. It’s OK to give yourself a break. You deserve it. As the years go by, you’ll find it more challenging to make time for a break, and I believe it’s important to take time now rather than later. You have your whole future ahead of you to find success and accomplish your dreams. Don’t feel rushed or pressured to jumpstart your career! It’s OK to take a breather.

With that being said, I’ll leave you with some final words: Enjoy each and every moment of your life. No matter how stressed or busy you are, take time to enjoy your surroundings and what you get to do on a daily basis. Remember that each day that goes by is a day you can never get back. Live in the moment and enjoy every possible second at Baylor.

Sic ‘Em Bears Forever! 🙂

Opportunity Knocks

By Patara Williams

My heart leapt.

I whispered, “Praise God!”

I got the interview.

Let’s backtrack a bit.

I am a Pre-Med Sociology major who is slightly hesitant to go to medical school. I just don’t think I am ready to commit to another four years of rigorous course study…yet. So, right now, I’m considering graduate school or going directly into the work force.

I graduate in December. So, I need to know my plans for the future by about….YESTERDAY.

But, that’s not how God operates. My plan never goes as I planned.

Have you ever told someone that you’re a Sociology major? If you have, you’ve heard at least one of these:

  • What the heck are ya’ gonna do with that?
  • Is that the same thing as Social Work?
  • Social Workers are the best!
  • You’re definitely going to graduate school.
  • Good luck with finding a job.
  • Yikes (followed by the person ambling away awkwardly).

In lieu of this, I decided to take up an offer I found in one of my Baylor emails [READ THOSE] and went to the HireABear Career Fair at the Waco Convention Center. Dressed in my best pencil skirt and blazer, I approached dozens of companies, handing out copies of my resume to every recruiter.

There were more than 150 different companies there, so the job opportunities were endless! I had never entertained the thought of working immediately after college…I honestly didn’t know I could.

I left the fair feeling very optimistic about my future and less worried about what I desired to do. I realized that as long as I enjoy doing whatever it is I’ll be doing…I’ll be absolutely fine!

Fast-forward six days: I was notified that I was chosen for one of the most coveted interviews for recent graduates. The rest…is history in the making.

In all things, be willing to explore your options and when opportunities knock, at the very least, peek through the peephole.

Wish me luck!

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HireABear Career Fair 2014

94 Days…Until Life Begins

By Patara Williams

Where did the time go?!

On Friday, I will be attending my last After Dark (all university talent show) as an undergrad.

On Saturday, I will be taking the GRE (Graduate Records Exam), a glorified SAT-type test that is required in order to apply for Graduate School.

Next Wednesday, I will be attending a HIREABEAR job fair. Paying for one’s own rent is not fun, but it is a segue into grownup-hood.

In 94 days, I will be graduating from Baylor University!

Last week, I dreamed that I was staring into a mirror with my cap and gown on…anxious much Patara?

I’ve recently found myself overusing the phrase, “If I knew then (freshman year), what I know now…”

I was the epitome of stubborn as a freshman. I knew that I would never change my major, I knew that I would maintain with a 4.0 GPA, I knew that I would go to a Texas medical school and I definitely knew I would graduate in 8 semesters.

I knew wrong.

My four and a half (yes, I’m elderly) years as an undergrad have slapped me in the face on innumerable occasions. The personal timeline that I drew out for myself told me what I would do, when I would do it and how I would get to the point where I wanted to be. However, it didn’t control for the learning experiences that I would inadvertently encounter.

Along the way, I have learned what I do not: like, agree with, believe in and so on. The Patara that I knew freshman year is totally different from Patara that I know now.

She now knows that life will throw curveballs at you, really fast ones.

She now knows that her life may not work out the way she planned, but will eventually end up magnificent.

And she now knows the essence of a Baylor education.

So, she tells you to:

Embrace your time as a student. Challenge yourself with opposing viewpoints. Question what you believe, so that you can know why you believe it. Learn to listen to others; it means much more than just giving advice or empty feedback. Don’t be afraid to spend time getting to know who you are because you’ll be forced to reckon with the perceptions of the rest of the world. Enjoy your time here because pretty soon you’ll be saying, “If I knew then what I know now.”

I Love This Place

By Courtney Roberts

Walking around campus these past few weeks, I’ve been stopping more than usual -stopping to take it all in, talk to passing friends and enjoy the warmer weather. I’m becoming quite sappy. When I think about everything that has happened during my Baylor years, I’m caught up in a wave of emotion. I feel happy, blessed, thankful, proud and overjoyed at the friends and memories I’ve made. I always seem to think, “I love this place!”

These past two weeks have been especially wonderful. As school winds down, I’ve gotten to spend more time with friends, wander through Cameron Park and goof off more than usual. I celebrated my 22nd birthday, went to numerous end of the year parties and attended my last class ever. It’s going by much faster than I thought, and I’ve found myself taking quick pictures of things on campus in a bout of nostalgia. If I could take a picture of the Pat Neff bells playing “That Good Old Baylor Line” one last time, I would!

It’s funny to look back at where I was four years ago, experiencing major senioritis as I was about to graduate high school and not giving much thought to what my life would look like at Baylor. To be honest, I almost didn’t go to Baylor. I was torn between the University of Oklahoma and Baylor, and I didn’t make a decision until April 30, a.k.a the day before I had to make a decision. I was definitely throwing caution to the wind.

But, I’m glad I didn’t have many expectations going in. Baylor blew me away. I was amazed at how easy the transition to Baylor was, and I frequently called my mom to tell her about all the things I was doing and how I was never coming home. Before long, I had a big group of friends that I hung out with most of my waking hours. We did all kinds of shenanigans together, from sneakily climbing into Pat Neff’s bell tower in the middle of the day to hanging a 15-foot-long balloon arch between the outside of our friends’ windows at Penland. Eventually, I buckled down and learned how to study, but that is a different story.

To make a long story short, there is no way to succinctly tell you what an impact Baylor has made on my life. I’ve made friends and memories that I’ll cherish for a lifetime, and I know so many of my peers will tell you the same. It’s been a crazy adventure, and I’m confident that this is just the beginning!

Below are a few pictures of my favorite Baylor memories.

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Celebrating my birthday with some friends from church!

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Kappa Alpha Theta’s member class of 2011. These four years have been such a blast with them!

 

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By far one of my favorite Baylor memories was getting to study abroad in Florence, Italy, with the Baylor journalism department. You can read about it here!

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After graduation, I will be working in the Texas Capitol as a legislative aid for a state representative. I’m thrilled to be working in such a fun place. I have no clue what life will look like in this next season, but God has provided so much already. Finding this job and finding a place to live in Austin just seemed to fall into my lap. I consider myself abundantly blessed when I look at all that has happened this year, let alone these last four years. But, I know that I’ll be back for football games in the new McLane Stadium, and I’ll make it a point to stop by campus when I pass through Waco.

I love this place, but “the old has gone, and the new is here!” So goodbye, Waco. Hello, Austin!

Sophia’s Senior Confessions

By Sophia Cooper

With graduation rapidly approaching (14 days, 22 hours and 1 min from writing this sentence, but who’s counting?), I have started reflecting back on my Baylor experience. What was my favorite memory? My biggest regret? My most successful moment? So, here they are: Sophia’s Senior Confessions!

  1. Morning classes are hard, and I had Physics 1 every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 9:05 a.m. fall of my freshman year.  To counteract the sleepy monster that hit me mid-lecture, I snuck down to the Atrium Café during class and got coffee. At least twice a week…for the entire semester. (For the record, I got an A in that class!)
  2. My only major regret is not going to the OU football game my sophomore year (the 2011 season). I had a long week, tons of homework and knew we would just get blown out anyway. As I sat on the couch with my boyfriend David, we watched in awe as our Baylor football team made school history. Our discussion: “We could totally make it to Floyd Casey Stadium before the fourth quarter…” “I don’t know, there’ll be traffic…” “Nah, we’ll blow it…” “Let’s go…” “There’s traffic…” Back and forth, until we ended up just watching the TV as our fellow students stormed the field and rocked the Big 12. The worst part? My sister Katrin made it on ESPN.com.
  3. I am proud and embarrassed all at the same time to admit that I won the female division of the Gut Pak Run this spring. The Gut Pak Run is an event sponsored by the Freshman Class Council and the Baylor Triathlon Club to raise money for Mission Waco, a local charity. It consists of running one mile from campus to Vitek’s BBQ, eating a Gut Pak (I had a small) and then running back to campus.  I’m proud to say I won the race and embarrassed to say that I ate my Gut Pak faster than anyone else in my heat!
  4. I would never admit this to her face, but I loved having Katrin on campus with me. Having my sister here meant that no matter what happened, I had a friend.  While we didn’t hang out together as much as we should have, I loved having her study with me, running into her randomly around campus and taking pictures together at football games. We had two completely separate social circles and lives, but we always had each other. Spending my sophomore year Diadeloso with her was an absolute blast; even though it was her last one, she shared it with little me. Now that we’re growing up and moving out on our own, I realize how much of a blessing it was to have those extra 2.5 years of living near each other.
  5. I participated in events solely to get free food and T-shirts. You do what you gotta do in college!

These are only a few of the confessions I’m OK with my mom reading about (sorry Mom!), but the list of kooky memories I have goes on and on.  Tomorrow is my last day of class EVER, and then by 11 a.m. next Saturday, I am done with finals. I remember moving into Heritage House freshman year knowing no one but Katrin and desperately latching onto my roommate Lizzie in order to have one friend.  Now, we’re inseparable. These four years have gone by way too quickly, and now it’s time to be a big kid. God has provided me with more memories and experiences than I can put into one blog post, and I know that they have helped form me into the woman I am today. I am excited to announce I will be working as a Systems Engineer for Lockheed Martin’s Fleet Ballistic Missile program in Sunnyvale, California, post-graduation!  God has a big plan for me, and I know that my Baylor experience was part of His vision.  I wouldn’t trade a single moment of it for the world.  The memories and relationships I created over the past four years will last me a lifetime.

A Junior Already?

By Torie Abbott

We’ve all heard it before…the graduating senior reminiscing about how quickly college has gone by and the importance of enjoying it all. I definitely remember listening to these people, and as a freshman I remember thinking, “No way. Four years is such a long time!”

Earlier this week, however, as I was preparing for finals and all of the studying that will come with it, I came to a stunning realization…in less than two week, I will be halfway done with college.

How can I already be a junior? As a freshman, everything seemed so far away and everyone seemed so old. But now, I am registering for LSAT prep classes and looking at law schools. I now realize how close I am to being done.

College is not easy. It can be very challenging at times. It can be frustrating. There are moments when you are entirely overwhelmed and times that you are very homesick.

But then, you also have some of the best times of your life. You meet some amazing people, make best friends and go to fun events, all while getting an education. I am saddened to know I am halfway done, and I am left thinking, “Where has the time gone?”

That is what happens though. Each of us moves onto things after college; that is why it is so very important to embrace every moment, have a lot of fun and study as hard as possible. Because two years from now, when my time here is done, those are the things I am going to remember most of all.

 

 

Running the Good Race

By Courtney Roberts

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” – Hebrews 12:1

Lately, I’ve been feeling like my life has become all about running, literally and figuratively. After Spring Break, I helped with the toughest half-marathon in Texas, the Bearathon, which is comprised of both a half-marathon and 5K. I’ve also been interviewing for jobs and trying out figure out my post-graduation plans. It’s exhausting!

I’ve hit that point in the semester where I’m kicking it into “survival mode.” Every day, my goal is to simply make it to tomorrow. As long as I can get all my homework and to-do’s done on time, I’ll be OK.  From there, I can keep going, hence the running metaphor.

If you’re a high school senior reading this, I can bet we’re in the same boat. Are your parents asking you every day where you’re going to college next year? (Come to Baylor! You’ll love it.) There’s definitely a level of stress that comes along with figuring out what the next season holds. When I see my friends getting jobs or enrolling in grad schools, I get overwhelmed. It’s hard to watch! I couldn’t tell you why I don’t have anything figured out yet, but I know God works on His own time, not mine.

One of the ways I de-stress is by running. Whenever I get anxious, I like to run in the cemetery by my house. (It’s not as weird as it sounds.) It’s quiet, peaceful and really pretty. In the midst of all the craziness, it’s nice to do something good for yourself rather than something that just adds to the stress, like staying up till 3 a.m. in Moody Library.

My advice is this: find whatever it is that you love, and do it often. It’s so easy to get swept away with to-do lists and planning at this point in the year.  If you do, you’ll be much more joyful and able to see what God is doing in your life and in that season!

My Baylor Bucket List

By Courtney Roberts

I’ve been thinking about this list a lot lately: my coveted Baylor Bucket List. Now that I’m in my last semester, it’s time to knock these all out! I hate to say it, but I forgot about it in the craziness and busyness of the last few years.

This has really been more of a running mental list I’ve had since my freshman year. I recently decided to finally write them down. Thankfully, I’ve got some time to do them this semester. I’ve gotten close to doing some of these, but I’m treating them as a “pictures or it didn’t happen” kind of thing. So, here it goes!

1. Go to Church Under the Bridge.  Mission Waco holds church for many of Waco’s homeless population every Sunday morning under I-35 across from campus. I’ve heard wonderful things from those who have been.

2. Climb the rock wall at McLane Student Life Center. This is something most Baylor students probably intend to do before they graduate. The SLC renovated their climbing wall in the last year, making it taller. So much for my fear of heights!

3. Study at Armstrong Browning Library. It’s rumored that this library, which is named one of the country’s most beautiful college libraries, is the inspiration for the library in Beauty and the Beast.

4. Bowl at the Student Union Building. Did you know the SUB has a bowling alley and game room in the basement? It has a few lanes, perfect for gathering a group of friends for some on-campus fun.

5. Run through the fountain at the Baylor Sciences Building. Every time after working out at the SLC next door, I think about running through the fountain. But it’s been way too cold.  Now that the weather is warmer, I can’t make any more excuses for chickening out!

In addition to these, there are quite a few things I could add to my bucket list for the sake of crossing them off. A few of those is getting a picture with Ken Starr, running one of the Baylor Line flags at a home football game and climbing into Pat Neff’s bell tower.

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Whether they are planned or not, there are so many opportunities to explore the adventures of Baylor’s campus and community. I’m thankful for all the wonderful, spontaneous, unplanned memories I’ve made, and I’m looking forward to the next round!

Finding the Perfect Job

By Courtney Roberts

“So what are you doing after graduation?”

That dreaded question. Now that I’m in my last semester at Baylor, this seems to be the burning question for every senior. To be honest, I still don’t know. I have applied for a few public relations jobs in Dallas and Washington, D.C., but I haven’t heard much back yet. I’ve reached out to old supervisors, networking contacts and friends who might know of any potential jobs, but it’s terrifying! No one likes rejection. And, I know I’ll probably get rejected plenty of times before I land my first job.

Thankfully, Baylor has great career resources. This week, I made a stop in to Career & Professional Development to get my resume reviewed and to get some advice on where to find viable jobs. Baylor has a website called Hire-A-Bear that lists hundreds of companies looking to hire Baylor grads. You can search by city, company, major, etc. It also includes links to other job search sites that are great resources.

Career & Professional Development (CPD) also holds mock interviews and provides us with tons of interviewing tips. They also have booklets on writing resumes and cover letters. It’s a lifesaver. Now instead of running to my roommates’ rooms at midnight to have them proofread my emails and cover letters, I can keep meeting with Kat at CPD to help me increase my chances of getting the job.

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When I get anxious, I remember that God is in control, and it will all work out. I like to tell myself that I’m smart, accomplished and have something of value to offer potential employers. Don’t give up, friends!