Sunday Fun Day

Instead of having the luxury of sleeping in until lunchtime, I chose to go to Sunday mass with a couple other students. Some even had their parents check them out for a couple hours. I was surprised to see several parents right outside the Hank Ingram dorms just as I left to go to the Commons for breakfast. And while at the Commons, I wasn't so surprised to see very few people having breakfast. Even my roommate, Lindsey, chose to sleep in for as long as she could. I wouldn't blame her, I would have probably done the same thing. But I felt the  need to attend mass for my own sake. Walking to chirch, I was struck by how close fast food restaurants were to the church. On one side was a church, and on the other side was a Taco Bell. I needed a dose of food for my soul, and skipped out on the fast food on the other end. 

What I loved about the Cathedral of the Incarnation is how it felt just like my church back home. Regardless of your religious affiliation, finding your respecting place of worship is like feeling right at "home." No matter where I choose to go to school, I hope I can continue to stay in touch with my spirituality.

As we start the second week of VSA, I've started to think more about my family and friends back home. And instead of feeling homesick, I feel the opposite. Even if I am thousands of miles away from the Bay Area, I haven't actually missed being home. I'm shocked, especially because I thought I'd be extremely homesick. But I've been so busy that my time has been occupied elsewhere. Of course, I love and miss my loved ones. But being away since the second of July has shown me that everyone needs to have some independence from family. And college is a great way to slowly break those ties of relying on your mom and dad.  Distance is just a number. I could be an hour away from home and never see my parents. Or I could be seven hours away from home and contact my parents on a daily basis.

Walking up the state capitol.

While inside Nashville's public library.

Seeing the sights of Nashville further away from Vanderbilt University, each house was on a scavenger hunt to gain more points. It was as if we were competing in Amazing Race, except 10 times less intense. With S-House in last place, my proctor group and I were hoping to rack up some points. Walking up the state capitol, I began to feel discouraged. But the further we got into the challenges, the better I felt about our chances. It was also a bonus to see more of Nashville. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw how nice their public library was. It looked like a library you'd find at a college, minus the children books.

Finishing as much tasks as we could, we decided to treat ourselves to some ice cream at Mike's. I decided to try a scoop of their red velvet and pistachio ice cream. They were both equally delicious. And the shop was adorable. It reminded me of an old fashioned ice cream parlor. By the time we walked to where the buses would pick us up, the rain started to pick up. And I found myself quickly finishing the last bits of my ice cream. I've found the weather on the other side of the country to be as bipolar as the weather in the Bay Area. It's unbelievable to see how different and alike the West and East Coast are everyday.

With the first week of VSA coming to a close, I'm excited for what awaits us this week. With a full schedule on our hands, I'm sure to add more experiences to my journey. After much self-reflection, I'm hoping to find more of a balance between my mind, body, and soul.