The University Journey

When I began university I was doing it just for something to do after school. I went into health in year 12 cos I had a spare subject and a good friend said do health with her, so I did. It ended up being my favourite subject, how about that.

I wanted to stay in Bendigo. Leaving was not an option at the time. So I went to the Bendigo La Trobe open day and Public Health appeared to be a continuation of year 12 health. I made a decision that that was what I was going to do. I almost did education or arts.

Through year 12, I felt like I was in a hidey-hole and my world felt narrow consisting of just school and church. Through the weeks off, between school and beginning uni, I felt free and when uni started, going back into the hole of year 12 was not an option. I was so determined to continue living life that I ended up doing heaps, and I mean heaps. I was out every night. I had got a job at McDonalds and I was working there 3 to 4 nights a week. Doing children’s ministries, doing all sorts of stuff, every night of the week. I was also getting up early for uni and struggling with some of my subjects. By the time mid-year exams came along I was so very tired. I was studying on the floor in my room, and I fell asleep. That was when I realised what I was doing was rather stupid. (The crying at the drop of the hat and consistent grumpyness didn’t give it away.)

At some stage through first year uni I decided why I was in the course. I wanted to go overseas to the poorest place I could find, and fix it. We were doing lots of study on developing programs and helping communities and I thought the best place I could put all this in practice was overseas.

In second year I started ‘Masterlife’. This was a great discipleship course. I was so encouraged and it pushed me to focus on what God was really calling me to. I stopped lots of things I was doing that were really distractions, and focused on uni and mission. I was also able to find that overseas mission is not necessarily what God is calling me to. There are things here that I believe God wants me to do and that’s cool. From this I believe that I’m in a much better place for many things I want to achieve and feel strongly about.

My parents left at the end of my second year at uni. I have spent this year without them, and that’s been interesting. While having no income 3 times this year, I have been trying to finish and figure out what to do next year. There was one point about February, where I thought I wasn’t going to finish uni this year. I’m rather pleased everything appears to be ok and if all goes well, I’ll be finished in 3 weeks. That’s a wonderful thought. I am rather excited about what the end of uni holds. This will include finding work, directing a mission and moving to Ballarat.

Uni some of my lecturers have said, is a time of change and preparation for life and what that holds. I don’t think that this comes from the work we do at there, but from how we handle everything that goes on as well as the work. I do feel so much more prepared and grown up and ready for what life holds. It’s all exciting.