AASIA Mentorship Retreat 2010

Two months ago I received a pamphlet for this program called AASIA (Asian American Students in Action) where freshmen get paired up with mentors that can help them transition into college life more easily. At first, I doubted the program. I was in this "high school mentality" where I thought this program was for people who couldn't make their own friends and full of losers. Needless to say, I still signed up for it simply because I love filling out applications (not being sarcastic). I didn't know what to expect and I didn't know if I was going to even attend the meetings at all. When the day of the information session came, I decided to go since my friends were also going. Since I was already at the information session, I gave in and filled out an interest application so they could pair us up with some kind of mentor. Only a certain number of people who could be paired up with somebody were allowed into the program. However, we wouldn't know whether we got into the program or not until later on in the week.

Some people from Intervarsity I had met were mentors in the program and told me really great things. Thankfully, because of them, I wasn't dreading the program so much anymore. I was excited to be notified whether I'd been paired up with somebody or not. When Thursday came, I was notified that I had been admitted into the program. Part of the program is this mandatory retreat that we have to attend for one weekend. One of the mentors warned us not to miss it. "If you miss it, you're going to feel so out of the loop because you didn't spend over forty hours with everybody when everyone else did." This past weekend was the retreat and I have never been more satisfied with my choice in being in this program.

The first night, we were paired up with our mentors and introduced to our family members. Right off the bat, I already loved not just everybody in my family but everybody in the program. Everyone just looked so down to earth and friendly, and they really were! We played so many ice breaker games and group games that were so much fun and it really got me to learn more about everybody. We worked together in groups to climb over a 12 foot wall, we worked together to get 20 people onto a 2.5ftx2.5ft platform, we trusted each other when another partner was blindfolded, we listened to each other as we worked as a team to help get things done. It was such an awesome time and I got to know so many people over a course of 2 nights and 3 days. We ended our last night there with a much needed campfire with songs, shows, smores, scary stories, singing, and star gazing.

This past weekend couldn't have been better. I don't regret going to the retreat instead of staying home and studying for orgo all weekend one bit. I love my family, I love the mentors and mentees. And I honestly can not remember the last time I've laughed so hard, nor can I remember the last time I forgot all the cares about the world around me. It felt like a dream, but I have the pictures to prove that it happened.

This year is going to be a wonderful year. I can feel it.

WHY YES I AM INDEED BACK

Tumblr became too casual for me and nobody really reads the super long posts anymore (besides Jack).

I've also decided that you guys really need to know what's happening with me in college and keep tabs on me, so I'm back so you guys can be nosey and stalk me forever.

just so you know, I'M DOING GREAT AND COLLEGE IS AWESOME.

Everything that has happened this past month is probably the best thing that's ever happened to me

Leaving him behind
Talking to him became an addiction and eventually, that's all I cared about. I didn't care about the friends around me. I didn't care if I was disrespecting anybody for texting him all the time and not talking to my friends face-to-face. I always was in contact with him 24/7 and knew what he was doing every minute of the day. Eventually, I talked to him more than I talked to God and my spiritual life went down the drain. I was afraid to come back to God because that would mean giving this boy up because he wasn't Christian and he wasn't good for me spiritually. I couldn't do that and so, I decided to put him over God. Every single 365 picture or any general picture on my tumblr became any text from him. It was BAD.

I know that him falling for another girl was probably all part of God's plan. It was necessary for me to go back to God and refocus my priorities. Him leaving me was the best thing that's ever happened to me, and even though sometimes I miss having somebody to text 24/7, a human being is never as reliable as God.

Leaving my home church
I've grown too complacent in my home church. I didn't feel like I was growing and I was simply going so nobody could ask me "WHERE WERE YOU LAST WEEK??" I simply went to hang out with friends and nothing I learned in services processed in my head. I felt like I knew all the answers, but I was just too lazy to apply it all.

After I moved to Boston, I was forced outside of my comfort zone. I was in an entirely new world with nobody I knew and no support group directly behind me. You would think that I would rebel and do all those "NON CHRISTIAN" things like partying, drinking, etc. because nobody was watching, but I think it forced me to turn to God more than it did to turn from God. I knew that the people I would meet wouldn't be completely reliable and at that point I didn't have a group of friends I was comfortable with and could always be with at all times. But I just remembered that no matter how lonely it can be, God is always there. He's constantly working in my life, and it's been more and more prominent as I'm living here on my own.

Intervarsity started up on Monday and I've never felt better. I went to Freshman Small Group on Wednesday and met some really cool sophomores that seem really open to meeting us and helping us feel more comfortable at IV. Today (Thursday), we had this thing called Catalyst, which is basically a small group of people from IV who come together once a week to do praise and prayer. It felt REALLY nice. Even though I didn't know about 75% of the people in the room, we were all worshiping the same God as one church. I knew, that at that point, God had put me in the right place. I had found my place of belonging and I met these people for a reason.

Even the churches here in Boston are amazing. It's time for me to go to a multi-ethnic church instead of a primarily Asian based church. Citylife is amazing and the speaker really makes me think. I'm checking out a new church called Reunion with some people from IV this Sunday, and probably going back to Citylife for a second visit--yes that is indeed two churches in one day. I'm really excited to see how much I will spiritually mature in college.

I've never felt more confident about why I'm here in THIS college on THIS road with THESE people before. Thank God.