Packing and a new perspective

When I first sat down to write this article, I told myself I would not write about the recent HELM conference. I knew Brad Lyons would soon be adding a detailed explanation and overview of this annual retreat to the website; I also knew his version would include quotations from many HELM scholars, not just myself, and pictures of our speakers. Another reflection on the weekend, I told myself, would probably be redundant.

Unfortunately, when I tried to think of another topic, I drew a blank. The HELM conference stubbornly came back to mind. I do have other events in my life, surely, upon which I could reflect, but none are currently as vivid or as powerful as my recent memory of my trip to Kansas City. So call me redundant — I am going to write about the HELM conference after all.

Firstly, one should know that I really hate packing, and was not in the mood to do so for a trip to Kansas (of all places) last weekend. This is not to say I had bad memories of the last HELM conference I attended — quite the contrary. But I was not in the mindset to take time off from the rush of campus life. I was disappointed to miss my formal that weekend and worried about two exams in the coming week. Perhaps because I last attended a HELM conference two years ago (I missed last year's because I was studying abroad), my memories of the benefits of the conference had faded. As I packed my bags on the Thursday night before I left, I fretted over how many textbooks to bring along and scowled at my roommate, who was debating which formal dress to wear Saturday night.

Three days later, my perspective had completely changed. As I again packed my bags to return to school, I was so appreciative to have had the chance to meet with and learn from our incredible speakers. Coming from diverse backgrounds and organizations, they shared a drive to change the world for the better, and a faith to carry that dream forward, even when discouraged. They reminded me to look beyond the frustrations of the day-to-day, beyond the "Dartmouth bubble," to the serious problems, injustices, and inequalities present in our world, and to ask myself what I can do about it.

Furthermore, I was sad to leave the other HELM fellows. Everyone at the conference was so open, friendly and encouraging. From group discussions to worship services to telling jokes together over s'mores, we became more comfortable and honest with each other in a few days than I do with some students on campus in months. Packing that Sunday morning, I felt re-energized from my weekend with the other scholars. Though I wished I could spend more time with them, I felt prepared to return to my various projects on campus with a renewed enthusiasm.

Overall, the HELM conference was exactly what a "retreat" should be: a time to reflect upon how I can impact others and work for change in world that desperately needs it, and how my faith and my friends can sustain me through this process. Maybe packing for some time and reflection away from campus was exactly what I needed.