Fountain of Youth

Ponce de León, and many other spent a great deal of time searching for the Fountain of Youth. The Fountain is said to restore the youth of those who drink of its waters. I've been thinking about youth a lot lately, and the blessing and curses involved with youth. Now, the Fountain of Youth is written about in historical passages, mythological stories, and other writings. Here are my three questions:

1. Is it a restoration of physical youth?

2. Is it a restoration of emotional & psychological youth?

3. or both?

I rarely write about my job, mainly due to confidentiality reasons, but in this particular blog I am going to be commenting on my work. During the interview, I was asked a common question - what would be your greatest strength for this position? (for the random reader... I was 25, and interviewing to be Dean of Students). I remember looking them directly in the eye and saying my youth. I went into the interviewing expecting that my age was going to be of some concern. Yes, I have a college degree, a doctorate, and I'm a licensed attorney- but I was 25. I can remember one of the gentlemen's jaw drop at my response.

Why on earth would I say youth? Here is why- to me in order to be able to not just "discipline" students, but to interact with the student body, I honestly feel like you should be somewhere near their age. I explained that while I was younger than most applicants, I also spent three years in law school where I was trained specifically to deal with actions and consequences. This was to deal with, I felt, was the source of concern...would I be able to discipline someone so close to my age. This area of my job- I probably have the least problems with. It breaks my heart to have to discipline, but the rules and policies are in place, and I will always stay strictly to the policy for every individual involved.

Now, having that all said, I will go back to my original questions about the Fountain of Youth. While I guess I can somehow understand the appeal of being restored to a physical youth... I will be honest when I say that I do not think I could spend part of my life searching for something that would take me emotionally & psychologically backward. Going to a state university, I learned a lot about the real world, and managed to hang on to my faith. That is not to say I have never messed up, but at the end of my education, I still realized that I wanted to do God's work first.

While I have had several individuals comment on how difficult it must be to be so close to the students' age, I can honestly say the blessing outweigh any costs involved. Yes, rumors are constantly spread about me showing favoritism or acting in some unprofessional way. My response is this- I do not show favoritism. If you don't believe me, you can ask some of my closest friends, and they (if they choose) will tell you that I discipline everyone the same. I value every student equally on campus as a student. However, if at the end of the work day, I choose to be friends with any of them, that is my right as a person.

There is nothing in the handbook that states that I cannot connect with the student body- be it through friendships, mentoring, dating, etc. Does this mean that I am going to forget the example I am setting for others,absolutely not. However, at the end of the day I am a young adult who is surrounded constantly by people within my age group. I have students who are older than me. I have dated individuals younger in the past quite a bit younger than a lot of the students at the school, as well as older individuals. I will not apologize for who I am as an individual. I do my best every day to let Jesus shine through me. Some days are harder than others, but that doesn't mean I quit trying. I am human, and I know I'm not perfect... but no one is.

I will never do anything to jeopardize my integrity or my at the school. If I ever question if something were to be appropriate i have always asked for the advice of my colleagues, and boss. I truly feel like that while some choose to believe what they wish about me, those who truly know me will know that I am always there for any and every student. Sometimes this means advocating against the administration, crying with a student who's heartbroken, or disciplining a student. My intentions are always for the best of Freed-Hardeman and for those I work for and with. When I say those I work for- understand this... yes FHU writes my paycheck, but I am VERY aware that I work in student services. Our job is to serve the students. If there were no students, we would have no reason to exist.

While my youth sometimes makes me more "compassionate" as they like to call it ... and I have been told I will grow out of it. I choose to say that it's love for where I work, and the work I do. So, if i choose to be friends with, go on a date with, or spend time with students. I am not breaking any kind of rule. I am just being human like everyone else. Yes, I have had two birthdays since I started work and so I am physically older... I have also learned that while I am growing emotionally and "growing up," I am also still learning to deal with not only the joys the students share with me, but also the pain. At the end of the day, I still am able to relate very well to the students. That is part of why I was hired- to bridge the gap between the students and the administration. Every day I pray that I am doing my best at my job, being the best possible influence i can be, make the right decisions (even when they break my heart), and to help those that I am able to. This is probably the only post I will ever make so directly about my job, but it's been on my heart, because sometimes i feel misunderstood- by lots of people on campus, not just the students. So as for the Fountain of Youth- I will take my age .. as it is... and in this particular period of my life, I am convinced that i am right where I belong.