Wow.

When life is great, it truly is fantastic. Time is flying by so quickly that I barely have time to catch my breath, but I have never felt so alive.

In brief, this was my January:

• Applying for Truman Scholarship.
• Acceptance as alternate intern for the United States Embassy in Lima, Peru.
• Model United Nations - Lead Mentor and Position Paper committee (both new roles for me).
• Found a new campus organization: Alma College Students For Peace and Nonviolence.

While the other activities have been great, I am particularly excited about the Peace and Nonviolence group. We have some great activities coming up on campus. The first is a showing of the film: Gandhi. Hopefully, there is a great showing and lots of people come. Our second event is the Alma College Hug Day. The idea is that people wear shirts (we'll be selling specially-made ones) and every time they hug someone they get a signature on the shirt. The object is, of course, to cover your shirt in signatures. Sort of like a competition - medals of honor for hugs. I should credit Buddy and Ray with the Hug Day idea. I think it is a spectacular idea for helping to spread a culture of peace across the campus.

Oddly enough, this group has brought me into contact with some faces from my past. An acquaintance from Greenville who recently transferred to Alma, Steve W., a man I graduated high school with, has been a great help and has been very enthusiastic about the organization. Similarly, a girl that did theatre with me -- Lindsey S.-- has been very willing and helpful. Pat T. has also expressed desire to advocate for the organization. It is exhilarating to have such support from home!

Anyway, I am very excited about the potential of this organization. If we can keep enough key people and recruit new members and/or volunteers for events while effectively progressing toward a culture of peace here at Alma, I am sure Alma College Students for Peace and Nonviolence will stick around for the long-run.