Much Needed Space

These past few days I have been in Baltimore for the American College Personnel Association (ACPA) conference. While I now find myself at home and exhausted, there are many things that I walk away with greatly appreciating from my time spent in Baltimore. I think what I most appreciate was the space that was created for many influential things to take place. Things that may have never taken place, had I not been in Baltimore for this period of time.

I am most thankful for the space and opportunity to enter into what I hope to be a great friendship with my cohort member Courtney. Up until this time, I had only really gotten to know Courtney through the context of our classroom. But now after 5 days spent in Baltimore, venting to each other about the outrageous amount of money we spent on a very disappointing hotel, studying for finals, processing the sessions we attending, creating documentaries on the ACPA experience, tequila shots, and an abundance of laughs, I consider her to not only be an absolutely incredible human being, but someone I intend to have a life long friendship with.

Sticking with the friendship theme, I am very thankful for the space provided for me to get to know some other cohort members in a better way and to really appreciate their personalities and who they are as people. Additionally, I am so thankful for some much needed space to work on redeeming friendships that had gone way off track and nearly derailed. While still a work in progress, the difference in our friendship from Friday to Wednesday is very recognizable.

Going to ACPA also provided me the space to:  think, to discuss, to vent, to dream, to plan, to improve, to believe.  All in a way that I hadn't yet before. I feel as though the conversations I had, the sessions I sat in on, the ideas that were created have given me enough things to reflect on to last me to the end of the semester. This conference only solidified my recently determined passion within the field of Student Affairs. I also feel that this conference instilled in me a confidence in my ability to hold my ground in this profession that I apparently had been lacking before. It is because of the space so adequately provided that I am thankful for everything that took place these past few days. However...

The only space that was not created from this trip involves my waistline and the now clear lack of space. I guess 5 days of eating out for every meal catches up with one quickly. Must find a way to immediately recreate that space!