Backwards…

            Did I mention I am going to Prague in the fall?  I will be spending my first semester studying abroad at Charles University in Prague (which, for those of you who are as geographically challenged as I am, is in the Czech Republic).  I have been preparing for this trip since last October, but it is just now sinking in that I will not be at Rockhurst in the fall (fear not, I will still be blogging from Prague so you can see what the experience of a Rockhurst student studying abroad is like).  So before I tell you all about Prague and everything I am looking forward to, I would like to take a look back at Rockhurst and tell you about some of the things I will be sad to miss in the fall:

Orientation.  The funny thing is, not many people appreciate orientation as freshmen.  This is the perfect week to do basically nothing, and all of the coolest people are usually involved in orientation (I have a roommate who is a coordinator…think I’m a little biased?).  I never got the chance to be a leader because I thought family vacation would interfere, but I have hung around for a few and I can tell you there are very few funnier sights than your orientation leader friend running across campus with a full cheesecake to bribe an orientation judge, followed by his gaggle of freshman, or everyone covered in bubbles at a foam dance party.

 

Mass of the Holy Spirit.  Probably the only time classes are officially cancelled for something.  It is a huge mass in September at St. Francis Xavier, and EVERYONE is there—students, professors, administrators.  The Church is packed, everyone wears red, and you get a ticket for a free lunch that day on the quad if you go.  When the weather is beautiful, there is no better way to spend a Tuesday morning.

Homecoming.  There is an entire committee dedicated solely to planning homecoming.  All week they are out on the quad giving away t-shirts or hosting events like a hypnotist.  If you sign up fast enough, you can be one of 200 students who get a free dinner before homecoming.  One year it was at Fogo de Chao, and it completely redefined my definition of all you can eat (you don’t even order!  They just keep bringing you food!).  And the dance itself is a great chance to hang out with friends in all different classes. 

 

SAB Events.  Student Activities Board pulls out all the stops in the fall.  From game show events like The Price is Right, to biweekly comedians or musicians, events like these are the perfect opportunity to put the homework aside for a few hours and engage in one of college students’ favorite activities: getting free stuff. 

I could go on and on about missing seeing freshman wear their lanyards for the first month of school, the excitement of reuniting with friends from Omaha or Kansas City that I’ve missed all summer, or how beautiful the trees on the quad are when they change colors.  I know I will love Prague, but Rockhurst has been my fall home for three years, and even as I am wandering through fabulous European museums, I be wondering what the trees on the quad look like after the Mass of the Holy Spirit. 

Homecoming/Homecoming Week celebrations throughout the years