A Letter from the Airport

Dear Reader,

I write to you (again!) from the Grand Rapids Airport, experiencing a flight delay… perhaps a home-bound college student’s worst dream. Although I’m anxious to be home, I’m also excited to be writing to you!

To save time (and a rather confusing story of changing flights), I’ll cut to the chase: With the issue of what appears to be a weather delay, my estimated time of arrival has gone from 6pm to 11pm. It’s quite a bummer, but I am very thankful I still have the chance to get home tonight!

Secretly, I always wondered what it was like to have to manage flight delays on my own. How do I figure out what to do and where to go to fix it? I’ve been with my parents before during this situation, but I had never really paid attention. Lucky for me, my mom was just a call away and we got everything worked out! Also, the attendants helped me rebook my flights during check in.

Instead of going from Grand Rapids to Detroit to Iowa, I’m traveling from Grand Rapids to Minneapolis to Iowa! The length of my trip is longer, but here’s a fun fact: one of my friends who lives in Minnesota is actually on my flight, too! It’s fun to have some of my Hope friends making the trip with me.

I’ve got miles to go, but the journey is great. It’s a good reminder that there’s often many paths to reach the same destination.

What’s the craziest travel change you’ve ever experienced? Comment below or tweet at me @hopesophie17.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at sophie.guetzko@hope.edu.

Blessings,

Sophie

A Week In Review

TGIF. I never knew this day would come. Okay, Fridays always come, I’m just over-exaggerating. Many exciting things happened this past week, and more exciting things are going to happen. Want to know why? Because WINTER BREAK IS AROUND THE CORNER! Truly exciting. Okay, so I want to share with y’all what I did from last Friday until today; like a ‘Week in Review’ dealio.

LAST FRIDAY
A week ago today, I had my first Hibachi experience. Yes, I’ve been to plenty of Japanese restaurants, but I’ve never fully experienced Hibachi, when the chefs cook the food in front of you. Talk about a tease. I was sooooooo hungry by the time our chef was cooking, all I wanted to do was eat, but his dazzling display of skill and talent was well worth it. I just want to take the time to thank my friends who made these plans. In the slideshow at the bottom of this post, there’s an artsy picture I took.

SUPERBOWL SUNDAY
Obviously, last Sunday was the Superbowl. A bunch of my friends, including Chelsea Barfield, fellow Hope blogger, went to our family friend’s house, the Winters. They are so nice to have us over all the time. Seriously, if you’re reading this – YOU ROCK. Anyways, we enjoyed each others company, great food, and interesting game… if it was a game, to say the least. In the slideshow below, there’s a picture of me and my friend Alex with brownies on our teeth to make us look buck-toothed. It’s kind of a weird tradition started my freshman year. Classic me; goofball.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 4th
For my Maternity clinical, we are required to have a periopertative experience. For those of you who don’t understand medical jargon, periopertative means the entire surgery process; pre, intra, and post. You know how PERImeter means around something? PERIoperative represents the same idea, all around the surgical process. Anyways, it was such an exciting day. It started at 0645 (sorry, I’m used to military time now). You might think that’s early, it is, but for surgery, I’ll do anything. Once I got to the hospital, they welcomed me, and had me change ASAP so I can start my day. I chose to be with the ENT surgeon (ears-nose-throat). He seriously had back-to-back-to-back-to-back surgeries. He was so fast. Because of this, I observed 10 surgeries that day. It was super exciting to say the least. I’ve truly never explored surgical nursing – but after this awesome experience, I’m thinking about it!!!

WINTER BREAK
I’m oh so glad it’s break after my class today. Although I should be relaxing, I will be partaking in many homework assignments and getting ahead so I am in tip-top shape for what’s to come this semester. Also, if you didn’t know, THE 22ND WINTER OLYMPICS STARTED YESTERDAY IN SOCHI, RUSSIA! I watched it literally for 4 hours. Tonight at 1930 (7:00 p.m.) is the opening ceremony. Here is a link to get you PUMPED.

THE 22ND WINTER OLYMPICS!

And then when I’m not watching the Olympics, I’ll be watching my new favorite TV show, Parks and Recreation. Well, here is that slideshow I promised!

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I’ll definitely be posting something during break, so be on the lookout!

Beating the Winter Blues!

School in the winter can be rough. Dragging yourself out of bed for that 8:30 AM class after hitting snooze 58 times when it’s -142 degrees outside is definitely a struggle that many of us face. However, it doesn’t have to be this way! Here are my best tips for beating the winter blues for early mornings!

Beach
I took an impromptu trip to the beach at Holland State Park last weekend! It was beautiful, but cold!

Dress nicely

As much as I kind of hate to admit it, I have found that if I dress somewhat nicely (I’m talking anything other than pajamas or sweats here, guys), I feel better throughout the day. I am better able to pay attention in class. It’s easier to focus on homework. Since my body is dressed and ready for the day, my brain follows suit. Even if I’m running late and just roll out of bed and throw on a sweatshirt for class, I make sure to put on jeans. It sounds weird, but little things like that really help!

Eat breakfast

It’s hard to pay attention in an early morning class when, along with still waking up, your stomach is growling! I have a little container of granola bars on my desk. I grab one every morning as I head out the door for class and eat it on my walk over there! Since I’m not hungry, I pay better attention in class and feel much more awake.

Treat yourself

I have about an hour break between my classes on most mornings, so sometimes I like to walk downtown or to the Kletz and grab coffee or a muffin, or I make something in my Keurig. This obviously isn’t necessary every day, but a little pick-me-up every once in a while doesn’t hurt!

Say your verse

Every morning, as soon as I wake up, I recite Lamentations 3:22-23 in my head before I do anything else. “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; They are new every morning; Great is Thy faithfulness.” It reminds me to live each day into the unending grace and love that God keeps offering to us anew. I would highly recommend finding a verse that you want to live out every day, memorize it, and make it a habit to say it every morning. It’s such a great way to start the day!

Talk to God

On the same type of thing, praying always helps me feel better about whatever I have going on that day. A lot of times, I pray in the shower. It’s a good chunk of time to peacefully talk to God and start the day feeling calm and loved!

Drink water

I think this one is pretty obvious, but also easy to overlook. Making sure to drink water always helps me feel better, and I wish I actually remembered to do it every morning!

Find something that makes you happy

This is different for everyone, but I try to make sure to do something to put me in a good mood before I leave in the morning. A lot of times, it’s listening to music (usually Ben Rector), but sometimes it’s dressing up a little nicer or getting up a little earlier and taking the time to sit down with my granola bar and read a little before class. Find something small and simple that cheers you up and do it!

Look forward

Having something to look forward to is a huge help to me for motivating me to start my day! Often, it’s looking forward to getting a grilled cheese in Phelps for lunch (YUM), chapel, hanging out with friends, or something longer-term, like spring break! Having something cool to work toward in the future is a big reason to get things done now!

What helps motivate you through these cold winter days? Leave a comment, tweet @hopekathryn17, or email me at kathryn.krieger@hope.edu! I’d love to hear from you! Thanks for reading!

He who pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity, and honor.

—Proverbs 21:21

My Favorite Super Bowl Commercials

Happy Friday everyone! As everyone’s aware, the Super Bowl was last Sunday, which draws two distinct crowds. There are those who are football fans and love the politics of the sport and then there’s the crowd that looks forward only towards the Super Bowl commercials. I fall into this latter group, so I thought it would be a fun idea to share some of my favorite Super Bowl commercials that have stuck out to me over the years. Some are more current than others, but each are hilarious or tear at your heart in their own way. Some of you may remember these and others may be seeing some of these for the first time, so if you have a few minutes and are bored at work or need a study break, watch these videos:

1. This is probably my favorite one out of the bunch. You might see a common trend with these videos because I’m a huge fan of the Clydesdale Budweiser commercials, so brace yourself for some horses.

2. This commercial got a lot of attention when it was first aired because the concept was just so darn cute and the expression at the end is awesome!

3. This is another horse one that I have always enjoyed over the years.

4. I saw this commercial for the first time a few days ago because it was from this year’s Super Bowl. Anna Kendrick is awesome to begin with, so combine her with this sarcastic humor and you get greatness.

5. Justin Timberlake. Nothing else needs to be said.

Hopefully these quick commercials gave you a little chuckle from your hectic days so enjoy! Now with the Olympics beginning and everything, I’m sure I will be posting some highlights in future weeks to come in my blog, so stay updated! Have a great rest of your week!

Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter @hopeleslie15.

I Can’t Right Now, I’m Busy.

It is now Winter Break Eve, and I am ready to flee. But, I just can’t. I have SO much to do between now and tomorrow before I take a mini vaca in a town where there is more snow and it is colder. Wow, my break just sounded really melancholy. So, to make it better, I’ll be staying inside where it’s warm! There, that’s a little better.

You read my title, and I probably got your attention. Raise your hand if you’re busy right now

PAUSE

Okay, I can’t see you raise your hands, but I’m sure most of you did physically and metaphorically. I’m not going to lie, “I can’t right now, I’m busy” is one of my favorite excuses from the book. But I’ve noticed lately that instead of legitimately using it as an excuse, people just use the phrase to one up each other.

Firstly, why do want to “one up” each other by using this phrase. If you are going to do such a devious thing, you might as well be creative or blunt about. If a friend asks, “Hey, want to hang out tonight?” and you just don’t feel like doing it, just say so or think of something clever.

DISCLAIMER: I am not responsible for any broken friendships.

Back to what I was saying, instead of saying you’re busy when you’re obviously not, just tell the truth. Sometimes, the truth hurts, but lies are worse.

Secondly, everyone at college is busy. People are merely busy in different aspects. For example, those in the health field majors have seminars, shadowing experiences, and homework. The fine arts majors have performances, rehearsals, workshops, and homework. Others have work, and for a select few, some have multiple jobs. Ultimately, everyone is busy. No matter why you like it or not. Some people may seems busier than others, and hey, that may be the case. But don’t you dare tell people you are busier than them. Everyone has different lives.

Ok, I just wanted to rant there because this happened to me this week. Someone told me they were busier than me. That’s just not the case, pal. Just be honest with each other, ya!?

NEWS: Ok I have some exciting news. I want to start answering questions posted by other anonymously, like in a “Dear Abby” format. Send me your questions through email at, marvin.solberg@hope.edu and make sure you’re subject says “Dear Abby.” Ask questions about anything; school, friends, work, whatever! I want to be a resource for y’all, especially in your transition into college. Otherwise, you can direct message me on twitter and ask me that way, and I will answer anonymously that way as well. If you haven’t followed me yet, its about time. CLICK HERE. Let’s see how this rolls!

An Open Letter to My Host Family

Dear host family (or famille d’accueil as the French say),

Can you believe it has almost been a month since I started living with you?! It seems like just yesterday IES sent me the email I had be not-so-patiently waiting for, telling me that you would be my host family. From that email, I knew the coming months were going be a good time; mostly from your quircky family photo, but also because of the many similarities my family has in common with you. For example, there are five kids in my family and five kids in yours. More specifically, the first three kids are boys and the last two are girls. Everyone in my family is really awesome and everyone in your (our?) family is really awesome. This was definitely the work of magic, fate, GOD.

There are some obvious difference too, like the fact that you are a modern-day replica of the Von Trapps and my family can’t sing a Christmas carol in the same key. But really, the amount of musical talent contained in all of you is astounding. All of you play instruments! You sing hymns in three-part harmonies! Do I need to continue? I think not.

On top of that, all of you are so incredibly caring and welcoming. You loved me before you knew me and share your thoughts, daily dramas, and everything else me. You are also very French; a good thing, of course! You eat three-course meals every night (shout out to ma mère d’accueil, un vrai cordon bleu). What is more amazing is that you have chosen to do this for nine others before me. The 10 of of us are very, very lucky ladies.

The upside of our time together? It’s only February! The downside? It’s already February. Though we have three more months together, I can feel the time slipping from my fingers like a dropped ticket on the tram. I don’t want to think of the day when I will no longer paint the fingernails of les filles, avoid questions about boys from les garcons, and have deep conversations about religion and politics with mes parents. When I leave, there will no doubt be a crepe-shaped hole in my heart that only you can fill.

So let’s make the most of the time we have left together. I have no doubt that it will only be the best of times.

With lots and lots of love,

Rachael

Choosing Your Dream College

I’ve been in your position before, class of 2018. It’s the last half of your senior year, and for many of you, you haven’t decided where your next journey will take you. Where will I be for the next four years? For some of you, you’ve had your heart set somewhere, and for many of you, it’s at Hope College! That’s awesome. But I just want to post about choosing a college. It’s a hard choice, and it’s an important one. Hopefully this will help you decide where your next four years will take you. I got some inspiration for this blog post. You know who you are!!

SHORT PERSONAL ANECDOTE: So when I applied to college, I applied to A LOT, because I didn’t know what I wanted. I wanted to explore my options. Let me tell you, your options are infinite – and that just makes the college draft more excruciating and difficult. Another setback for me was that my high school did not prepare my graduating class well in regard to bringing in college admissions reps, applying to school, and exposing us to higher education. So, my trek to find my dream school was all on me, but I am SO incredibly happy the pressure was on me. Look where I am today. After visits and questions, I realized that each school was advertising itself.

Back to the blog post. Each school you visit, tour, and ask questions obviously want you to come there. Each school is diverse and unique. This is what attracts prospective students. Now you can keep asking questions, and “university” will keep answering them. But is this helping you make a choice? Or is it just getting your questions answered?

I mean each school can tell you all about the school they are representing, and Hope is the same. But one thing a college has a hard time answering is “Why should I go here?” And the reason is because that is UP TO YOU. Many students feel at home at many colleges, and many students attend a specific college simply because of its reputation. For some, like myself, attend a specific school because it’s a calling for them. I can ramble on about Hope’s strengths and weaknesses (which do exist, yes), but you know, there is a department that does that at each school, ADMISSIONS! 

Admissions offices all over the nation coordinate visits, tours, panels, and much more to attract prospective students. They also hire student workers to represent their school, like myself. I am here just sharing my thoughts, and my life at Hope College. It can seem so simple at times, but then I realize that it has the potential for an individual to become committed to this school or not, and that’s a power that cannot be abused.

After my rambling above, here comes my point. The question “Why should I go here?” can only be answered by YOU, but you can get help from others. Do your own research, write down what you’re looking for in a school. Make a pro and con list (those help me)! Do whatever it is you need to do to make a choice. Questions – ask them. This will help you answer your main question.

Does this help? I know it’s wordy and lengthy – but it’s important because it’s the next four years of your life. I can’t believe I’m MORE than halfway through my college career. It seems as if I just graduated a week ago. But like many college will state, college is the best thing that has ever happened. I want you, the class of 2018, to be able to say that too.

For those of you who have committed to Hope, or another school, CONGRATULATIONS!! That is a huge first step in the next chapter of your life. For those who are uncertain, I pray that you make a decision in the upcoming months, The Lord has a plan. Just wait and see!!!

Okay, one more thing here. If you are coming to Hope in the fall of 2014, here is a countdown to get you PUMPED! CLICK HERE!!

Well, that’s it for this Sunday morning. By the way, HAPPY SUPER BOWL SUNDAY!

A Weekend in Paris

I went to Paris last weekend, and it was kind of awesome.

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All my life I’ve heard that Paris a majestic, beautiful paradise, and I can now confirm this to be true. The “City of Lights” really is all its hyped up to be, and more. Unfortunately, I only went for the weekend and was unable to explore all it has to offer.

I was struck by how nonchalant all the Parisians seemed to be. I understand that it’s their normal, but seeing the Eiffel Tower in one direction and the Arc de Triomphe in another was breath-taking every single time.

Friday night, I hopped on a bus with Caroline, Ann, Emily, and Emily’s friend Jill, to walk around downtown Paris. Downside: We stayed in a hostel that was a bit of out of the way, so the bus ride took a while. Upside: We got a bus tour of Paris. We got off the bus at the end of the Champs-Elysées and that’s when it hit me. I was standing in the middle of Paris living every French major’s dream. And of course, my dream. I will never forget that feeling. We wandered for a bit before making our way to the main attraction.

Le Tour Eiffel
Le Tour Eiffel

We spent Saturday doing and see as much as we possibly could, which unfortunately was not very much. We took pictures at Sacré-Cœur, climbed to the top of L’Arc de Triomphe, and ate macarons at the world-renowned Ladurée on the Champs-Elysées.

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Louis Francois Bertin
Louis Francois Bertin by Ingres

Two of the biggest highlights for me were the Louvre and Musée d’Orsay. I went to the Louvre on Saturday and absolutely loved it. I saw some old Egyptian artifacts and several statues before making my way to the paintings. I recognized several pieces of art, like the painting to the left by Jean Ingres, because I had studied them in my art history class just days before. #OnlyinFrance

The Musée D’Orsay was just as incredible. There really are no words to describe seeing famous, beautiful, mesmerizing paintings in real life. If you’re ever in Paris, it is definitely a must see.

I realize that this post is pretty short, but there is not much I can say in words to describe how utterly amazing Paris is. It really was my dream to go there for most of my life and did not fail to live up to my expectations. Now, I want to go everywhere in France! I think it is safe to say that I have officially caught the travel bug.

-Rachael

Leadership From a New Perspective

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been fascinated by the idea of leadership. I’ve always wondered how someone can pick up momentum so quickly with a concept and cause others to follow. And now, as I’m preparing to declare a Leadership minor, I’ve found I’m extremely attracted to acquiring the traits necessary to be an effective leader.

Within the next few weeks, I am looking forward to declaring my major as Communications, my minor as English, and a second minor as Leadership — which is, in my opinion, one of the coolest degrees Hope offers — because it will help me grow in my abilities in the areas of Communications and English and teach me to serve others in my personal relationships and in the business world in the best way possible.

To begin my journey in the field of leadership, I’m currently in an Intro to Leadership class with Tim Schoonveld, and the knowledge I have acquired through this class has changed my world in entirety. I’m amazed to learn ways not only to lead others, but also how to glorify God through leadership in my relationships, classes, and other parts of my life.

This class has consisted of service projects, guest speakers, and reflection time for us to each determine our specific and special form of leadership. To me, one of the most amazing parts so far has been recognizing that the term “leadership” means many things to many different people.

If you do a Google search to “define leadership,” it says, “the action of leading a group of people or a organization.” But the question I raise is how.

How does one become a leader? What qualities does it take to lead effectively?

After reflection, I have recognized that for me to become a leader, it means to be humble, consistent, and to be looking out for the good in and for the other people surrounding me. It means to love God with my heart heart, mind, soul, and strength so that my ways are guided by His. I recognize that I will never be able to lead effectively, justly, and courageously without His goodness pouring through me.

To others in my class, leadership means to be responsible, strong, to think clearly, and many other qualities (the list goes on forever.) It is neat for me to hear the perspectives of others based on our personal experiences and personalities.

What does being a leader mean to you? Comment below or tweet at me @hopesophie17.

If you have any other questions about anything at Hope, please feel free to send me an email at sophie.guetzko@hope.edu!

In the meantime, stay warm and lead on!

Visit Day Must-Do’s

I know that there are a bunch of people headed up to campus for Visit Days soon, so I thought I would mention my favorite parts of the visits that I did at Hope as a prospective student! These are things that I think really helped shape my decision to come to Hope, and that’s a decision that I couldn’t be happier with! I hope these can help you out too!

Campus Tour

I think this one is probably pretty obvious, but make sure you tour campus! I think it’s really helpful to go on a tour with one of the tour guides who works for admissions rather than just walking around campus on your own, but it’s really up to you! I had an awesome tour guide when I visited and he just had really cool things to say about all the buildings on campus. He also recommended potential study spots and told us about where he spent a lot of his time, and I thought it was cool to get an inside perspective from a current student rather than just walking through buildings on my own.

Class Visit

Try your best to visit a class in the department you’re hoping to study in. My junior year I got to sit in on a music class called Eurhythmics, which I absolutely loved! I think that sitting in on a class really helps you see how the students in a given department interact with each other and with their professors and helps you get a little taste of what kinds of classes you might be in at Hope. I think class visits are definitely one of the most important things you can do on a visit. It might not sound the most exciting, but being in class is obviously going to be a huge part and focus of your time at Hope, so I think it is a great idea to get a feeling for what that will be like!

Res Hall Visit

I would definitely recommend walking through at least a couple of different residence halls. As a girl, I would definitely say that walking through Dykstra (cluster format) and one of the hallway format dorms (Gilmore, Phelps, etc.) would probably be helpful so you can see the two different styles and figure out where you might want to request to live during your time at Hope!

Chapel

Chapel was one of the things that really sold me on Hope. Attendance is not required, but it’s always completely PACKED! I think that’s so awesome and really shows the character of so many students at Hope. It’s only about 20 minutes long, but it could potentially impact your visit day more than anything else. I think Chapel is such an awesome experience and I hope you all choose to join in worship with us on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday at 10:30 a.m.!

Student Panel

I think student panels are an awesome way to get to hear about life at Hope from current students. You’ll get a chance to ask any questions you might have and get immediate, honest answers from a group of students involved in many different activities, living in different buildings, and studying in different areas, so that’s pretty cool!

Downtown Holland

I. Am. In. Love. With. Downtown. Holland. Seriously, you guys. It’s perfect. For me, downtown Holland is a pretty big part of my time at Hope. I spend a lot of time there with my friends grabbing dinner, coffee, fro-yo, doing a little shopping, or just spending time getting some fresh air! It’s only about a block from campus and it’s definitely worth the walk, even if the weather isn’t the best on the day you visit!

I hope you all love your visits to Hope as much as I did! If you have any questions, feel free to comment, tweet @hopekathryn17, or email kathryn.krieger@hope.edu! Thanks so much for reading!

“This is how we know we’re living steadily and deeply in him, and he in us: He’s given us life from his life, from his very own Spirit. Also, we’ve seen for ourselves and continue to state openly that the Father sent his Son as Savior of the world. Everyone who confesses that Jesus is God’s son participates continuously in an intimate relationship with God. We know it so well, we’ve embraced it heart and soul, this love that comes from God.”

1 John 4:13-16