Archives: Mariah Mosley

Dear Freshman Year,

Thank you for giving me such a great year. Though it had its ups and its downs, I am proud to say that I made it through my first year of college.

Thank you freshman year for teaching me that it’s okay to play basketball at 3 in the morning in order to relieve some stress.

Thank you for allowing me to meet some great, new lifelong friends, some that I will never forget.

Thank you for teaching me that studies come first but taking study breaks is what really makes the difference.

Thank you for revealing to me the importance of sweat pants, leggings, and workout shorts, and how they aren’t just for working out. They are a very fashionable choice for going to class in every day.

Thank you for proving to me that 7 a.m. classes are not okay if you like to stay up until 3 a.m.

Thank you for showing me that it’s perfectly fine to take a nap when I am overly stressed.

Thank you for teaching me that just about every CBU event has free food.

Thank you for introducing me to my new passions and hobbies.

Thank you for giving a new family of sisters that I can call my own forever.

Thank you for teaching me that long boarders rule the sidewalks of CBU and you do risk getting run over every day while walking to class.

Thank you for teaching me that I need to shower before anything happens.

Thank you for providing me with 15 new T-shirts because my workout shirt count was critically low. (CBU is the real MVP.)

CBU has definitely taught me much more than I can recall. The year is coming to a close, and I can say that I definitely loved it. There were times when I struggled, but things worked out in the end and I am glad I wasn’t anywhere else. Now that this year is over, it’s time to build new experiences and create new memories that will last a lifetime. Sophomore year, here I come!

As the school year is coming to a close, it’s time for students to pick their housing for next year. Having already chosen my roommates, this process became a lot easier when choosing where we wanted to live.

My roommates and I had initially decided we wanted to live on the east side of campus and try to avoid living in The Colony, a living area on the west side of campus. As a group we also decided how many rooms we wanted, whether we wanted to live upstairs or downstairs so on and so forth. We kept in mind all of these things that we hoped for in our new apartment.

When our time slot opened to choose, we came to find that our top two choices did not have the room that we needed (3 person, 2 room, etc.). We came to find that the only room that catered to most of our wants and needs was in Colony. We also found a room in a different living area on campus that would have suited. After continuous back and forth about which apartment we should pick, we ended up going with Colony. After going through a list of pros and cons of each apartment, Colony seemed to have a couple more pros than the other.

After warming up to the decision, we grew excited about getting a new apartment. With this decision, we know that this is God’s plan for us and it will work out for his good.

Disney Tickets and Sprinklers

Not long ago, CBU’s Community Life was selling discounted Disneyland tickets for CBU students. When the information was put out about purchasing tickets, my close friend and I jumped at the opportunity.

She and I figured that these tickets would sell out fast. With that, we decided to camp out the night before to ensure that we were able to purchase tickets. This was my first time doing something like this, so I knew it would be an interesting time. She and I went all out for this night. We managed to get a tent, tons of blankets and pillows, and things to keep us occupied.

The night before, we set up our tents around seven just behind the Community Life Lounge. By the time we got there, we were about seventh in line, just behind a larger group of students who were camping out together. After we got everything set up, we went to shower and eat dinner. Then it was time to camp. Around midnight, the sprinklers went off. Not thinking ahead, we did not consider that this would happen. Fortunately, when we set up our tent, we put the rain fly on our tent, not anticipating that the sprinklers had intended to ruin our night. The rain fly saved the day! It kept our tent completely dry. Unfortunately, other tents that were planted next to ours didn’t have weather proof covering and they managed to get soaked by the sprinklers.

The overall moral of the story here is: Always put your rain fly or weather proof covering on your tent when camping out for anything at CBU. Just in case.

Through the duration of the spring semester, there are multiple tasks student must accomplish in order to enter the upcoming fall semester. The main things that must be done are course registration and housing. These two things are extremely important in order to have a successful year.

The way I go about registering is by writing out what classes I want before actually registering. Once I have done that, then I pick what kind of schedule I want; all morning classes, all afternoon classes, half and half, online, etc. I personally chose all morning classes after 8 a.m. but ensure that each day ends before noon. Scheduling varies from person to person. I tend to wake up early and want to be productive. However, this past semester I learned that there is such a thing as too early for me (i.e. 7 a.m. classes). It takes time to learn what works best according to your personal situation.

Another important aspect that must be handled is housing. Choosing whom you want to live with is critical to a successful year as well. Anyone who is human would automatically feel that rooming with your best friend is the best route to go. However, it isn’t always. Rooming with your best friend can actually either distract you or simply cause turmoil between you two. As for me, I chose to room with girls that I live with this year. I chose them because I already know how they live, how their brains work, and their various attitudes

Now that I have accomplished these things, I know that next year should be a great one. Here’s to sophomore year!

Throughout the year, I have had moments where I struggled. There were days when I would wake up unmotivated, but something in me still made me get up and make the most of my day. It wasn’t until recently that I realized what kept me going all this time.

Being at CBU, I have made plenty of great friends, however there is this one group of girls I grew exceptionally close to. Just before spring break, one of these girls left for two weeks for a family vacation. I and the other girls whom I had grown close to knew that we would miss her. What we didn’t realize was that every single day, the rest of us were at our best because of her.

Her being gone opened our eyes to how much each girl in our group means to the rest of us. When one is gone, things begin to fall out of line. When she returned home, everything was back to normal, and we were all at a peak performance. Her absence meant that the remainder of us had to rely and encourage on each other to press through.

We came to the conclusion that each girl is a vital piece to how the group acts as individuals. Just like a puzzle, we fit together perfectly, and when missing a piece we just aren’t complete. I continued to push through every day because I knew that this group of girls would be there when I woke. They have all had such a positive influence on me, and I don’t know where I would be without them.

There have been many events happening here at CBU lately. However, my favorite event that I have attended this year was Holi: Festival of Colors. This festival is originally celebrated in India to honor the victory of “good” over “evil” (Holi Festival), and the arrival of spring and the end of winter. Because CBU has a diverse student population, we love to celebrate many diverse cultures. CBU International Center hosted a Festival of Color. This was an open invite for all CBU students so we could be a part of this grand celebration.

The night was filled with performances of traditional Indian dances and songs. We all danced and sang along. But what is a color fest without color? This was my favorite part of the night. We were all given bags of colored powder in which we were to throw it in the air as well as on those around us.

After the all of the powder was gone, I look to see that we all are covered from head to toe in multicolored powder. We were all having trouble recognizing one another since we all looked the same. In witnessing this, I saw it as a strong metaphor of God’s grace and love. Though we are all different on the outside, once God covers us in his grace and love, like the colored powder, God sees us all as equal and loves us all the same. Holi was definitely an eye-opening and fun experience for me. I can’t wait till next year.

Holi Festival http://www.holifestival.org/

Ladies Night

On March 3, the Recreation Center held a special event called Ladies Night. It is a night where the gym is reserved just for the ladies of CBU. Not only is Ladies Night just for the girls to get the Rec to themselves to work out, there was also other activities for the ladies to get involved in.

The biggest event of the night was the Fit Jam. Held on the basketball court of the Rec, different stations were set up in each corner, each one offering a different workout: biking, BOSU blast, free weights and Zumba. Another big event was yoga, which was held upstairs in one of the group exercise rooms. The Rec also had the rock wall open for us to climb. This was my favorite part of the whole night. I have a strong passion for climbing however, I haven’t climbed since last semester. Since I had gone without climbing for so long, I figured now would be a great time to climb again and I couldn’t have chosen a better time to. It was relieving to be back on the wall and to climb with other girls that enjoyed it as well.

A couple other things that were available to us that night were facials, makeup tutorials and henna tattoos. What girl doesn’t enjoy all those things? Being a personal fan of henna, I had to make sure I received one before I departed. Along with the body care, we were also given spa water, dark chocolate with cranberries and almonds, as well as free headbands! This night was a lot of fun to attend. It was amazing to have a night of fellowship, fitness, fun, and free stuff!

One of the many traditions we have here at CBU is Woo Fest. Woo Fest is an all-male talent show put on by Residence Life. The main purpose for this show is for the men to “woo” the females at the school. However, this is all for fun. It is just another chance to dress up, witness some amazing talent, and enjoy a night with friends.

Those in attendance got dressed up party style. Party dresses, fun accessories, and glow sticks were the trend of the night. Before the show started, a pre-party was held. That was a time to mingle, snack on some delicious sweets, and take lots of pictures. As the doors opened, we were greeted by men on stilts, clowns, and boys in blue full-body suits, all of whom giving us glow sticks of different colors. The gym was packed from wall to wall with people. The night was ready to commence.

Some of the acts ranged from an a cappella group to soloist and cover artists, some goofy, some jaw-dropping. One that was probably most memorable for me was a group who covered a handful of love songs and incorporated funny dances into each songs. Another memorable group was the a cappella group. One of the leads, H-Dogg, is an incredible beatboxer and can re-create just about any beat he hears. Along with his ensemble of talented singers, their performance was an impressive one.

At a young age, I enjoyed dancing. Like most young girls who dance, I started with ballet. As I grew older, I tried other styles including jazz, contemporary, and hip-hop. Contemporary and hip-hop were the ones that I grew most fond of. Of all the styles of dance, these are the two that require the most self-expression, and, I feel, are the most enjoyable to perform.

Since my junior year of high school, I haven’t done as much hip-hop. This semester, the Recreation Center introduced a new hip-hop class called Pulse. Being away from hip-hop for some time now, I had been recently longing to get re-involved so I figured what better way to do that than with this class.

We learned a short choreography to “Caught Up” by Usher. The class ranged from first-time dancers to performers with years of experience. The great thing about this was that there wasn’t a sense of “who is better than whom.” Instead, this class presented a vibe of fun and fitness with others who had the same interest.

While learning this choreography, I realized that the hip-hop side of me never left. Being around a group of people who enjoyed doing what I also enjoyed caused me to remember why I started dancing hip-hop in the first place. It is just a rush of unexplainable adrenaline and joy that can never be expressed in any other way. This class is definitely one that I will be attending for the rest of the semester.

There is nothing more intimidating than moving in with a group of girls whom you have never met. I think all of my housemates felt the same on move-in day. The initial thought of whether or not you would get along with all these girls remained in everyone’s head in the first few weeks. And may I say, we have come a long way since then. Me, two of my housemates, and our RA have found this special bond since last semester.

Over Christmas break, I thought that it would be nice to get away from the Cottage for a little while and be on my own back home. Boy, was I wrong! About halfway through break, I started to go crazy without having my girls around. It was especially hard when something during break would happen, and I didn’t have the same comfort I did at school. These girls have definitely had a big impact on my life.

Since we have returned from Christmas break, we have done nothing but grow closer and closer. We are so used to being around each other now, that we immediately notice if another girl is gone longer than they are supposed to be. We know where every girl is at just about every moment of the day. We have begun to develop sisterly instincts for one another. We are there for each other through the ups and the downs. People like this are impossible to replace.

I’m not sure what my freshman year would have been like without these girls. I am sure glad God has blessed me with them.