With shaky, unsure steps and a heart beating so hard it’s almost audible, the student makes her way to the first day of school. Her fingers grip her backpack straps a little tighter now that a mix of excitement, uncertainty and curiosity begins to well up in her stomach. Banners reading “Welcome Students” wave overhead. People coming and going make the big, bustling campus overwhelming and strange and even a little scary. Moms and dads are crying and putting off good-byes, taking pictures, savoring the moment. In the midst of the dizzying atmosphere, the new student realizes she’s on her own in a big, new world.

Orientation weekend brings mixed emotions

This week, all these things have set the stage for Biola’s orientation weekend. Students have come from all over, bringing with them a little bit of home, to unpack their things and prepare for life as a college student. To all of us, the first day of college is a familiar scene — one that compares to the very beginning of our academic careers. For just a moment, look back at your 5-year-old self and remember the sights, smells, thoughts and emotions that passed through you as you started your very first day of kindergarten. Not surprisingly, they are probably much like what we felt on our first day at the university.

“Can the start of college and kindergarten be all that similar?” you may ask. Well, let’s compare them, shall we? When you start kindergarten, your parents were probably remarking how big you’ve gotten, how quickly you grew up. They more than likely were pretty hesitant to let you go and be on your own at school. The same is true for our freshmen here at Biola.

Parents and students are hoping for the best, fearing the worst, and preparing as best as they can for a milestone that carries a young person from one stage of life into another. They go out and buy school supplies, trying to fill every need they can imagine their student will have at school. In college, this includes dorm supplies and things they’ll need to be able live away from home, like a can opener or scotch tape. But kindergarten has its own set of needs: a sack lunch, a new “Big Day” outfit, crayons and lots of reassurance.

Moving on from kindergarten

In kindergarten we struggle to get away from nap time. In college, we struggle to find it again. In kindergarten, we learn to share and play nicely with others. In college, we’re hoping there’s someone we know who can share with us, whether it be books, food or insight. We hope our classmates, roommates and friends “play nice.” And in both places, no matter how prepared we try to be, we have no idea what is awaiting us — we only know it’s something big.

The next year will hold many life lessons for all of us. Some lessons might be as small as coloring inside the lines. Others could be as difficult as loving our neighbors. As a college student, we will be sitting under great minds and experienced professionals who are training our minds to think well. We’ll be singing, reading, researching and listening to biblical truth, training our souls to love better. And we will be in a community of believers, friends and family that daily encourage us to be the best people we can to impact the world for Jesus Christ and train our hearts for service.

Kindergarten was the first step in growing up. This week, many of us take a giant leap into adulthood. And we don’t exactly know where that is or what it is like. But wherever this new adventure takes us, we can be sure of at least one thing: the joys and fears that come with change are always a worth-while endeavor in learning how to be better young men and women.