Skip to main content

Mountain Day






In a few weeks, I'm heading to Berry College for Mountain Day. Mountain Day is homecoming, parents' weekend, and a holiday all rolled into one busy, hot, celebratory Saturday.

The essential element of Mountain Day is the grand march. This tradition involves students lining up by class year and marching up and down a hill while holding hands. Students wear a specific colored shirt based on their gender and class year as well. I'm making it sound odd, but there is tradition and symbolism behind the march. (You can read more about Mountain Day here.) Other Mountain Day festivities include student olympics on the day prior, a picnic lunch, a church service, and reunions for various student organizations, clubs, and sports teams. The day was originally established because of the school founder Martha Berry's birthday, but it has evolved into much, much more.

I never missed a Mountain Day as a student; in fact, my parents usually came up for the day, and we had a great time. However, last year, I had no desire to go. I really can't explain why, but I just didn't want to be there. However, this year, I'm already getting excited about connecting with people I haven't seen in quite a while and walking down memory lane at Berry, a place where I learned and grew so much. A womens' Bible study that I was involved with weekly for all four years is having a reunion too, so that's definitely spurring on my excitement.

It's funny how hindsight is 20/20. I liked Berry a lot and I loved the incredible people I encountered there, but looking back, I don't really think I made the most of it. I worried too much, spent too much time studying, and didn't take every opportunity to soak up the experiences and environment around me. Don't get me wrong - I was busy practically every night of the week with my commitments to organizations, on-campus jobs and activities - I definitely refined my interests and explored new ones. But looking back, I think I would have spent more time just with my friends and less time being busy or worrying about school.

Berry people - I am looking forward to seeing you on the mountain on Oct. 2!

Enjoy the photos from my Mountain Days as a student. I also included a few of the march so you can see the tradition in action!

Comments

  1. RobSeptember 16, 2010 at 6:56 AM

    "I worried too much, spent too much time studying, and didn't take every opportunity to soak up the experiences and environment around me." Don't let my daughter see this please....

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Olivia Kate Update

We expected a routine appointment. Last April, the cardiology team told us that we did not have to return for another check-up on the hole in Olivia's heart for a full year. This was music to a mom's and dad's ears! Since her pediatrician had noticed the severe murmur in her heartbeat when she was just four days old, we'd visited the cardiologist office several times to monitor any changes in heart function. So far, it seemed that this hole was not causing any problems, and the doctors said that it might even close on its own. The ultrasounds of Olivia's heart today revealed a different story, unfortunately. The left side of her heart has enlarged slightly over the last year, which tells us that this precious organ is under a bit of stress due to the turbulence of the extra blood flowing in and out of the hole. The first cardiologist who reviewed the ultrasounds with us today told us what we really did not want to hear: Olivia is heading down the path that req
10 comments
Read more

What's Real

I struggle with mental illness. Like many others, I can't really define myself as falling cleanly into one category or give myself a specific diagnosis. Mine has manifested in different ways during different seasons of my life: sometimes it's anxiety, but other times it's depression, disordered eating, obsessive compulsion or a cocktail of these. Regardless, it's there, and while I experience a lot of happiness in my life, there's also some inner turmoil that I fight to keep at bay. Why am I telling you this? It's certainly not for pity or to draw attention to myself. I'm guessing that many people reading this also struggle, but others may not. For both parties, I want to take a stab at normalizing mental illness and I also want to point out a few things I've found to be true: - Mental illness is not limited to a certain stereotype. Depression doesn't just affect teenagers who prefer dark clothes and hooded jackets! It's not just the poor, ju
5 comments
Read more

Not a Disappointment

I recently received some disappointing news, which led to an awesome, very deep talk with my husband. Interestingly, through this conversation, God revealed that I have been believing a significant lie: that I am a disappointment to several key people. I realized that I have been believing that I am a disappointment to my husband, co-workers, and some friends. I have been hearing lies about my weaknesses as a wife (ex: my cooking skills), my abilites at work (not good enough), and how good of a friend I am to certain people (ex: I don't reach out to them enough, I'm too focused on myself, etc.). The enemy has been working to convince me that I'm a disappointment to some of the people I hold dearest. And I haven't been making him work very hard - I've fallen for his schemes hook, line, and sinker. For a while, I've had a hard time understanding why I feel I am a self-confident person, yet I struggle with insecurities in so many areas. God showed me that it&
5 comments
Read more