5 Blessings of Being a Residence Hall Student
Even at PCC, it’s easy to forget a blessing like having residence halls. . . to become discontent with where you are and what you have.
Maybe you’re feeling that kind of dissatisfaction.
Having been a residence hall student myself, I understand that feeling.
A good remedy for discontent, I’ve found, is counting your blessings. As a town student now, I can think of several blessings of being a residence hall student that I never fully appreciated until now.
1.) Critter Control
Roaches. I’d obliterate them with the most sophisticated weapons if I could.
. . . But trapping and suffocating them in glass jars will have to suffice.
In addition to annihilating roaches, squashing jumbo ants is also part of my regular combat training.
I know some people on campus have had the misfortune of encountering rather unwelcome guests, and I sympathize with you. But when I lived in the dorms, I never had to deal with critters.
Those roach tablets work wonders. Next time you see one in the corner of your room, (pick it up and mail it to me) send a quick prayer of thanks for PCC’s critter-control program.
2.) Meals—Ready-to-eat!
Most of us can agree that food is a blessing. We have it in variety and abundance. We don’t have to go far to get our hands on some munchies: even if our cabinets are empty, the vending machines are just an elevator ride away.
Yet, food is also something we can easily gripe about.
Taste. Texture. Quantity. Quality. Not like Mom’s recipe. There’s always something we can think wrong with our food.
I realize now that being able to get food so easily—not having to plan meals, hop in the car, drive to Wal-Mart, buy groceries, drive home, cook the food, and only THEN eat the food—was truly a blessing.
I’m thankful to be able to cook my own food now. But getting a meal on the table is a time-consuming process—a process that residence hall students don’t have to worry about.
3.) Social Network
One thing I miss about living on campus is the network of friends I regularly hung out with.
We all have our friend circles: roommates, suitemates, collegian mates, supper mates, chapel mates, study mates, Coffee-mates…
Living so far from campus, I don’t get to spend much time with my friends anymore. As a residence hall student, I could just walk into the VPA at any given time and find half of my friends there, working on their art projects. Now—well, it would be a very long, rather treacherous walk to get there.
Now I have to call my friends and formally invite them over for supper like responsible adults do… (scary!)
4.) Spontaneity
Being somewhat obsessed with order and organization, I’ve always kept a regular routine. But even in that routine, there was room for random “Hey, wanna go to the Sports Center?” moments.
Taking a study break to go bowling just isn’t convenient anymore. Neither is getting together with friends for supper—I usually plan that a week in advance.
That element of spontaneity is definitely something that makes living on a small-town college campus special.
5.) PCC Wi-Fi
Regrettably, I’ve complained about PCC Wi-Fi for being uncooperative.
But now that I don’t have Wi-Fi at home and a one-bar data connection—I’m not complaining anymore.
Actually, my husband and I stay on campus long after our classes are over just to benefit from the Wi-Fi. Ubiquitous access to fast internet is probably the biggest blessing of being a residence hall student—especially now that it’s accessible throughout the night.
So I’ve learned my lesson: “In whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.” (Philippians 4:11)
I hope you’ll remember these five blessings next time you’re trying to think of something to be thankful for—don’t wait (like me) until you don’t have them anymore.
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