Commencement Issue Part I

Cover: Kevin Halladay-Glynn and Tyler Barnett | Loyolan; Top Stories design: Sydney Franz | Loyolan; Top Stories as chosen by Michael Busse and Kevin O’Keeffe, Loyolan staff

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What: International Graduate Celebration Where: Bird Nest When: Friday, May 9, 2014, 10:30 a.m.

What: Kente Graduation Where: Sacred Heart Chapel When: Friday, May 9, 2014, 3:00 p.m. (ceremony), 5:00 p.m. (reception)

What: Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony Where: Sunken Garden When: Saturday, May 10, 2014, 9:30 a.m.

What: Graduate Commencement Ceremony Where: Sunken Garden When: Sunday, May 11, 2014, 10:00 a.m.

What: Commencement Mass Where: Gersten Pavilion When: Friday, May 9, 2014, 7:30 p.m.

LMU

Commencement Ceremonies 2014 Photos: Loyolan Archives; Graphics: Loyolan Archives; Cartoon: Loyolan Archives; Information compiled by Devin Feldman, Opinion editor

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Live as a Lion

Photos by Talia Baugnon, Caroline Burt, Chris Delgado, Steven Douglas, Kevin Halladay-Glynn, Josh Kuroda, Emilia Shelton and Emma Spiekerman

Layout by Kevin Halladay-Glynn and Caroline Burt | Loyolan

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The Loyolan photo staff would like to thank every organization and individual who allowed us to share a moment with them this year. Our hope is that every student, faculty and staff member, from the Loyola Law campus to the freshman dorms, will move forward with confidence, knowing that life is never stagnant or predictable and there is always another story to be uncovered.

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Voices From Above

LMU’s faculty gives graduates advice

“My advice draws upon the God-inspired cumulative wisdom of the ages: ‘Act justly, love tenderly, walk humbly with your God.’”-President David W. Burcham “Do the things that you love and that bring you joy. Choose to believe that what you want is possible.”

-Teresa Whitaker, Sodexo Sr. Retail Manager at the Lair Marketplace “Human beings are not born once and for all on the day their mothers give birth to them, but … life obliges them over and over again to give birth to themselves.” — Gabriel García Márquez, Love in the Time of Cholera “So, take delight in all that you have been, experience fully all that you are and embrace all that you will become!”-Provost Joseph Hellige “Treat each person you meet with respect. Listen more than you speak. Take time to be in the moment while still taking time to reflect. Live a life in service of the common good. And know that LMU will always be a part of who you are and a place that welcomes you home.”-Pam Rector, Director of the Center for Service and Action “We admitted you to LMU not only because you were a strong student but because we believed you would contribute positively to LMU's culture of strong community and eager engagement. As you leave the Bluff, remember your class motto: The purpose of life is a life of purpose. Choose a path that holds purpose and meaning for you, and pursue it with what you've learned and know is important a commitment to hard work, respect and support for those you encounter, and great eagerness to engage fully every opportunity that comes your way.”-Matthew Fissinger, Director of Undergraduate Admission “1. When intimidated, remember that all successful professionals were once helpless infants.

2. We live on a planet that is strategically suspended in space. Find out why.

3. It is an honor to be anticipated. Show up when you are expected. Be fully and respectfully present.

4. You matter. Prove it.”

-Elaine Walker, Assistant Dean, College of Communication and Fine Arts Information compiled by Editor in Chief Zaneta Pereira and Asst. News Editor Carly Barnhill; Graphic: Mo Haley | Loyolan

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ComMENCEMENT

Graphic: Mo Haley | Loyolan; Photo via James Lovell

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10 burning answers about Commencement University Registrar Kathy Reed reveals the details of the ceremony.

Ali Swenson News Editor

@aliswenson

1. Who are some of the notable Commencement speakers of past years?

I think all the Commencement speakers have had something of substance to offer the audience and especially the graduates. Our speakers have been selected for what they have been able to offer humankind.

There have been famous names, many others whose names were not so well known, but all have had an impact on lives around the world.

2. Has Commencement always been held at Sunken Garden?

For the undergraduate ceremony, yes. For several years, Graduate Commencement was held in Gersten Pavilion until the number of graduates outgrew the available space.

3. Are people allowed to get to Commencement early and save seats?

Sunken Garden opens at 7:30 for seating. The University does not allow the saving of a block of seats. Any tape or rope or string or anything else that would indicate a set of seats has been saved is removed. A person may sit down and hold one seat.

4. What kinds of performances and speeches does the Commencement ceremony feature?

At the undergraduate ceremony there are student and faculty awards presented to the recipients. The student Commencement speaker (valedictorian) and the individual selected as Commencement speaker give their Commencement

Information complied by Amanda Lopez, asst. news editor; Graphic: Sydney Franz | Loyolan

Loyolan Archive

addresses.

At the Graduate ceremony there is always a Commencement speaker and possibly one of the faculty awards is presented at the ceremony.

5.

Is there just one Commencement ceremony, or do the different schools and colleges host their own as well?

The ceremony on Saturday is for those students in all colleges and schools receiving their baccalaureate degrees.

The ceremony on Sunday is for students in all colleges and schools receiving their Master’s, Education Specialist or Doctoral degrees.

6.

How long Commencement take?

will the ceremony

From beginning of the procession to the singing of the Alma Mater is approximately 2 ½ hours on Saturday. It is about a half hour shorter on Sunday.

7. How many chairs are used at Commencement?

There are approximately 15,000 chairs in Sunken Garden (including degree candidate seating) on Saturday morning. About half of that for Sunday.

8. What kinds of logistic preparations are made for the ceremony in advance? For example, does the Sunken

Garden lawn get mowed differently?

Do Desmond residents have to close their blinds?

The sprinkler system must be shut off for several days so that the ground is dry enough to setup the stage, chairs and jumbotrons. I don’t think they mow the lawn differently. There will be a carpet put down where the sidewalk used to be leading from the apron of Regents Terrace to the stage steps.

Other than restricting move out during the ceremony, I am not aware of any restrictions set for the residence halls.

9. What is special about LMU’s Commencement ceremony compared to other universities?

I think it’s where we hold the ceremony. It is very moving to experience the students moving down Alumni Mall into Sunken Garden. The chapel is a glorious backdrop for the stage. And it’s the students. We have the best.

10. When will Commencement Mass be held, and will it include anything special for the big day?

The Commencement Mass is held the Friday night before Commencement Day. It is open to families of all faiths. Fr. Erps and his team in Campus Ministry offer all us a liturgy perfect for remembering where we have been and hope for where we are going.

Now delivering on and off campus from 11am-10pm Let us cater your next event! Call for details and discounts.

Need pizza for an on-campus event?

Watching a movie at home?

Busy studying?

We Deliver!

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laloyolan.com

The highs and lows of LMU sports this year

Expectations will be high for the team this coming fall. Just about every main contributor returns along with the solid incomKevin Cacabelos ing recruits. The spotlight will be Senior Editor on Perez, redshirt junior defender @KevinCacabelos Craig Nitti, junior midfielder John ombating apathy towards McFarlin and sophomore goalLMU’s sports teams is a keeper Paul Blanchette.

Not only will the team be a faconstant battle for the school’s athletic department, vorite to repeat as WCC champiespecially when its most visible ons, but it will also be a serious team, the men’s basketball team, contender for a national championship – or at least a deep run is struggling.

Two stories defined this past into the NCAA tournament.

While optimism surrounds the year in LMU sports: the men’s soccer team’s regular season West men’s soccer team, a big question Coast Conference (WCC) cham- mark defines the men’s basketball pionship and the men’s basketball team’s state of transition.

No more Anthony Ireland and coaching change.

Men’s soccer achieved the suc- no more Max Good. Considered cess the men’s basketball team so to be the most popular sports ardently desires. Led by freshman team on campus, men’s basketball superstar forward Adrien Perez, underwent a huge makeover in the LMU men’s soccer team put March after finishing last place in together an impressive run, win- the WCC again. Enter Mike Dunning eight of its last nine matches lap, an LMU alumnus who exudes before painfully falling in penalty routine, discipline and a serious kicks to Stanford University in the demeanor.

Dunlap comes to LMU with a first round of the NCAA Tournawealth of experience, coaching ment.

Credit Head Coach Paul at the NBA level for the Charlotte Krumpe for helping his team Bobcats while also having stints grind out several close victories, as an assistant coach at the Uniespecially in WCC play. Ten of the versity of Arizona, the University team’s 13 victories were by a one- of Oregon and St. John’s University. He also built a Division II goal differential.

Despite the disappointing end powerhouse at Metropolitan State to the season, Krumpe’s squad University of Denver in Colorado deserves to be celebrated for its where he won two national chamsuccess. The men’s soccer team pionships.

But the familiar attitude of and the women’s water polo team won the school its conference cautious optimism should rechampionships this past 2013-14 main with LMU sports fans when evaluating the chances of LMU school year. finding success under Dunlap’s

KC at the Bat

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Steven Douglas | Loyolan

LMU’s men’s soccer team emerged victorious this semester. However, senior editor Kevin Cacabelos believes the future looks bright for all LMU teams, who now have the summer to plan and practice for the 2014-2015 year. leadership. After all, in the past 16 years, LMU Athletics Director William Husak has hired three different coaches before Dunlap, and each one failed to grow LMU into a WCC contender.

Dunlap already lost Good’s staff’s signature recruits in Kyron Cartwright and Elijah Stewart.

And with the departure of Ireland, next season may be another rebuilding one for the Lions.

The most important time for this rebuilding process is this coming summer. Dunlap and his

staff have to hit the recruiting trail hard. Dunlap made it clear that he and his staff will distinguish themselves from past LMU coaches by finding success in recruiting. The faster this coaching staff can lure talent to the Bluff, the faster the rebuilding process will progress.

On the bright side, the team returns with two of the WCC’s best underclassmen. Freshman guard Evan Payne and freshman forward Gabe Levin will both benefit from improved coaching by Dunlap and

the rest of his staff.

So when someone asks you about LMU sports, you can tell them the men’s soccer team will be odds-on favorites to perform well in the WCC and the men’s basketball team is worth getting excited about – as long as it’s cautious excitement.

This is the opinion of Kevin Cacabelos, a senior history and Spanish major from Seattle, WA. Tweet comments to @KevinCacabelos, or email kcacabelos@theloyolan.com.

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Adams grateful to serve as 2014 valedictorian LMU was ‘one big, unexepected journey’ for valedictorian Adams.

Amanda Lopez Asst. News Editor @amandalo_

Philippa Adams, a senior screenwriting major, is making history as the first international student to be selected as LMU’s valedictorian. She’s had quite a journey since coming from China to England and finally to LMU – and she’s eager to share that journey with the graduating class on May 10.

When Adams found out she’d been chosen to be the Class of 2014 valedictorian, she was stunned.

“But after the shock wore off,” she said, “it was more just extreme gratitude that I had been picked.”

“Since I am not American and have come from so far away, LMU was kind of one big unexpected journey for me that I did not imagine,” she continued. “So to be able to talk about what I have learned in front of all these people ... I just felt a lot of gratitude for the opportunity.”

Adams was named valedictorian after undergoing a thorough selection process. All graduating seniors with a GPA of 3.7 or higher were invited to apply to be valedictorian through an email sent out earlier this semester. The pool of eligible students was asked to write a fourminute speech and complete an online application.

From this group, seven finalists were chosen. Each read his or her speech to a committee of faculty, students and University administrators, who ultimately chose Ad-

ams as valedictorian.

The news was announced to the University on April 24 at the Academic Awards Convocation. While Adams was stunned that she had been chosen this year, those closest to her were proud, but not the least bit surprised.

“I was so happy for Philippa when I heard that she was the 2014 valedictorian. She’s worked so hard here at LMU and truly deserves this honor,” said Adams’ roommate, junior biology major Katherine Wikholm.

One of Adams’ screenwriting professors, Jeff Phillips, also expressed his excitement for her.

“A valedictorian is someone who excels beyond mere grades. It’s an award that speaks to a wellrounded person, someone whose success reflects upon not only herself, but the University at large,” he said. “That’s an apt description of Philippa. She strives to improve herself, get the most out of life and in the process makes the world a better place. I’m a better person for knowing her.”

Chan Lu, Adams’ Chinese professor agreed on why she makes for a standout valedictorian. “Her academic grades are good enough for this,” she explained. “I think she represents what an ideal student should be: She is always sincerely interested in learning. When she identifies issues that matter to her, she goes out to explore it and find answers to her questions. She is focused. She does not go out and do a thousand different things just to make her résumé look good. She knows what she wants and she pursues just those things.”

Adams grew up in China, but attended an art school in England for

Kevin Halladay-Glynn | Loyolan

Philippa Adams, a screenwriting major and international student in the University Honors program, was chosen out of 60 applicants to be this year’s valedictorian. Adams focused pursuit of goals helped her earn this honor. her first year of college. Although she thought the school in England was fantastic and loved her professors, she did not feel it was a place she could truly call home.

She was interested in studying film production at the time, so she decided to look into schools in the Los Angeles area. Though hesitant at first, Adams finally decided on LMU because of how friendly everyone she spoke with was. After taking a beginning screenwriting course, she realized screenwriting was her true calling.

During her time at LMU, Adams has been involved in multiple areas of student life. She is a graduating member of Gryphon Circle service organization, an Honors student, a member of a Christian Life Com-

munity group and an on-campus employee as a student-coordinator at International Outreach.

Of all the things she has learned at LMU, Adams said the most important insight she gained was that “things do not always go according to plan, but that is not the worst thing that can happen to you.”

“Sometimes what your head wants, what you dream for yourself and what your heart wants in the face of that can be different,” she said. “You have to decide which one you want to listen to.”

As for her future, Adams is currently job hunting and plans to stay in Los Angeles. Currently, there are several careers that she sees herself pursuing. She would either like to write for a television drama, write

as a screenwriter for Chinese and U.S. co-productions or work as an animation writer. Wherever she ends up, Adams has two fans who are excited to watch as she transitions into a new chapter in her life: her parents.

“She has matured and grown in T confidence considerably, and developed into a caring, well-rounded young woman who is always up for a new challenge,” her father Mick Adams said. “In her time at LMU, she has developed a very strong bond with and affection for the University and its ethos.

The speech that she plans will undoubtedly be from her heart, and truly reflect the gratitude that she feels for having had the opportunity to spend time at LMU.”

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Jackie Bruner

Jackie, You are a treasure!

God has given you amazing gifts and talents that have impressed us all.

It has been an honor to have loved and cared for you these 21 years.

We are so proud of you Love, Daddy, Mama, Joe and Josh

Kevin O’Keeffe

We love you so much....

and we’re so proud of you, not just for all of your magnificent accomplishments - but for who you are. You’re a wonderful young man who is the best son any parents could ever have.

Love, Mom & Dad

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When I think of home, I think of the people It’s K-OK! Kevin O’Keeffe Senior Editor

@kevinpokeeffe

I

’ve been thinking about the concept of home a lot, lately.

As I prepare to move to New York City this summer, my second move to a big city in the past four years, there’s a part of me that’s hesitant to leave the life I’ve built for myself in Los Angeles. Despite how ecstatic I am about making the change to the Big Apple, I have some reticence about leaving this home on the West Coast. What will I do without Mendocino Farms a stone’s throw away? Starve, probably. Will the people in New York love Beyoncé? That’s a silly question — everyone loves Beyoncé.

Will it feel like home? I don’t know. And that scares me.

But what makes one place a home, anyway? Is a home only to be found “somewhere over the rainbow,” as Dorothy sings in “The Wizard of Oz”? Is it “a place where there’s love overflowing,” as an alternate Dorothy longs for in “The Wiz”? Or is it “wherever I’m with you,” as Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros put it?

There’s a seemingly endless library of songs about home, which I attribute to our endless desire to find one. We want a comfortable place that feels like our own.

We crave the warmth of a domicile full of love. We yearn for someone to share a life with, from traveling the world together to curling up on the couch and watching Beyoncé’s

visual album, as we all do every Friday.

Even if home doesn’t appeal to us now – I know I’m not alone in not being ready to settle down – it still remains an ever present end goal. We work hard, aim to be successful and suffer through scary periods of change – like graduation – all because it gives us the chance to build that home we imagine for ourselves.

In Austin, Texas, where I spent my formative years, there is the house where my family lives. Yet being in that space alone brings no such sense of comfort or belonging. It’s only when I’m there with my parents that I really feel the love that “home” implies.

At LMU, I’ve cycled through several different residences, some of which worked out better than others. Yet the times I’ve felt most at home are when I’m with my two roommates and best friends – even if we’re not physically in our house.

At the Loyolan, I was embraced by a group of incredible people that became my family at LMU. But, in what is perhaps the best case of life imitating feeling, the motion-controlled light flickers on-and-off when no one is in the office but me. When there’s no one in the space, the room goes dark and cold. When people are here, from Saturday morning to Sunday at midnight, there’s no spot that brims with more bright, vibrant life anywhere on campus.

Throughout my life, people have come and gone, so thinking of other people making up a home is foreign to me. Even as I continue to grow up, there are still people

via Kevin O’Keeffe

who enter and exit as quickly as a revolving door can spin. But there are some – friends, family and mentors – who stick around no matter where in the world I am.

To paraphrase Dionne Warwick’s “A House is Not a Home,” we’re not meant to live alone. All these locations are just houses.

The people around us make up our true home.

So, as I prepare to move again, I’m faced with the same fear I had when I moved to Los Angeles – the same fear I had when I started

working at the Loyolan. It’s the overwhelming fear of not finding the people who make life worth living, or of struggling to find my New York home. But when that fear bubbles up, I remember that despite those concerns, both L.A. and the Loyolan were just temporary houses – and introduced me to people who are part of my permanent home.

As the cliché goes, “Home is where the heart is.” But I’d argue that all the different homes you make in your life fill your heart,

not the other way around. I know that no matter where I end up, as I work to meet the people who will make each new place a home and sing Beyoncé at karaoke with me, I’ll still carry the people I’ve met throughout my life in my heart. To borrow from one last home-related song – Phillip Phillips’ – even as my life in New York begins, I’ll know I’m not alone.

This is the opinion of Kevin O’Keeffe, senior screenwriting major from Austin, Texas.

Please send comments to kokeeffe@ theloyolan.com.

Conquer fears, don’t let them conquer you Chris Culture Chris James Senior Editor

@cwj92movieman

G

raduation didn’t hit me until today, when after four years of working at Phonathon, I finally got my first solicitation call.

I’m no longer the supervisor, the peer; now, I’m the alumni. If this were “The Sting,” I’ve gone from being Robert Redford to being “the mark.”

Having talked myself silly about why LMU is so great and hearing hundreds upon thousands of alumni tell me what they loved about their LMU experience, I finally sat at the other end of the phone, reflecting on all that I loved about my college experience and forking over my credit card number.

Growing up, I had more phobias than the lead character in a Woody Allen movie. I was smart, but preferred to spend my days in front of the TV watching movies, the one true love of my life. I dreamed of leaving my small little cow town for L.A., the land of dreams, like I had seen in the movies. The fact was, I lived a charmed life, but I never really knew who I was. Having been adopted, I grew up around wonderful people, but those wonderful people didn’t really look like me. I was friends with people who didn’t think like me. In short, I simply didn’t know who I was, I just knew I wasn’t like the wonderful people back home.

When I got into LMU, I made a vow: I was going to make a mark

for myself. I was going to say yes to life. Since then, life has been an adventure. And just as people say your life flashes before your eyes right before you die, I saw my entire college career flash before my eyes when my name appeared on that caller’s monitor.

I saw my summer study abroad trip to New Zealand. I didn’t know anyone who was going. It was uncharted territory. It was new. It was exciting. It was just what I had always wanted. Flash forward to the end of the trip: After bungee jumping, cave diving, zorbing, luging and many crazy nights out on the town, I had new friends, new stories and a new appreciation for life and travel.

I saw my recent Alternative Break trip to Haiti. I’ve never been confronted by a problem as massive as the food security problems throughout the beautiful country.

However, I’ve also never seen as much positivity and genuine appreciation for life. I can’t get the faces of those incredible, inspiring people out of my head and it will forever change how I see the nature of foreign aid and the problems of the world as a whole.

I saw my newfound love for running. From my first mud run, to my first half-marathon, all the way to finishing the L.A. marathon, I reflected on how five years ago, I would have never believed I would try anything athletic, much less a marathon. Most of all, I thought about the freedom and peace of my eight-mile runs to the beach and back and how I’m going to miss my route.

I saw all of my internships. LMU has given me so many opportuni-

via Chris James

ties to get involved in the film business, something that has always been a frightening, faraway dream of mine since before I could talk.

I saw all the nights and hours spent at the Loyolan. Making my voice heard has taught me more about myself and more about the fantastic diversity of our incredible student body.

Finally, I saw myself doing my first mock call on my first day working at Phonathon. It was new, it was scary, but this was going to be my life and I was excited to finally live it.

I can’t shake any of it. I will never forget all the teachers, all the students, all the laughs, all the tears, all the late night study sessions, the crazy nights, the beach bonfires, the after-class Loft trips, the adventures around L.A. and the nights spent talking through our house’s movie nights. Thanks to all of the incredible people I’ve met along the way.

Finally, I’ve found myself in the heart of L.A. Every day is brighter, no matter if I’m partying on the beach with my best friends, playing James Bond Nightfire with

my roommates or going alone to a double feature at the Landmark.

Thanks, LMU, for an adventure I wouldn’t trade for the world. For once, I don’t know what the future holds. All I know is I’m staying here. I’m not going home. I’m not settling into the family business.

I’m blazing my own trail here in the City of Angels, one day at a time.

This is the opinion of Chris James, senior screenwriting and marketing double major from Lodi, Calif. Please send comments to cjames@theloyolan.com.

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Defining the college experience KC at the Bat Kevin Cacabelos

Senior Editor

@KevinCacabelos

C

ollege is laughing at yourself.

I remember walking up the stairs of McKay one day my freshman year, and a girl stopped me. Removing her ear buds, she asked me what year I was. I replied: “freshman.” “Oh damn, you look like you’re 14,” she replied. I laughed.

College is mind-opening. I recall walking out of Fr. Rudnick’s philosophy classes with a sparked curiosity. I cherish the times Dr. Tritle made me laugh in my history classes. And I am thankful for my long journey as a Spanish major, with all those professors who taught me, believed in me and challenged me. Estoy contento con mi progreso.

College is the feeling of invincibility. From the end of February to the end of March, in a span of six weeks, I did not sleep in my own house for a single weekend. I made a spur-of-themoment decision to go on a trip to Tijuana for De Colores, flew to Las Vegas to cover the WCC tournament, took a spring break road trip to San Diego, returned to Tijuana for another De Colores trip with MAGIS, experienced my final MAGIS retreat off-campus and then returned to Las Vegas for a trip with my friends. The deadlines,

via Kevin Cacabelos

fortunate I have been in my time here responsibilities and schoolwork at LMU. Of all my jokes, my parents least still existed – but after all these favorite is that Ion wish stick around experiences myI could weekends away, for a couple more years. Even if I didn’t I faced myobligations withI realized a huge know why I chose it, I’m glad smilewas on my face. for me. So screw LMU perfect College is heart-breaking. I returned home, feeling devastated after an immersion trip to Chile.

I saw the pain and suffering that crafting the perfectly eloquent farewell comes with inequality, injustice and column I’m the not limitless there yet,love but of I’mthe a poverty.– But whole lot closer than I would have been small community ofparents Nogales without LMU. And my willlifted clip my out spirits. the innocent this and Witnessing keep it forever anyway, so I’ve got that going for me, which is nice.

joy of a child, the determination of a community member to care for the homeless and seeing a friend’s spirituality flourish – these memories will inspire me for the rest of my life.

College is unrestrained happiness. I couldn’t stop grinning and laughing out of disbelief when I walked back alone on that rainy Madrid night, completely invigorated by a teaching high. I treasured those “ah-ha” moments

This is the opinion of John Wilkinson, a senior screenwriting major from Phoenix, Ariz. Please send comments to jwilkinson@theloyolan.com.

It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are. e.e. cummings

Dear Kevin,

Every day of your life, we have been proud of you.

Seeing you graduate to be who you really are, is our proudest day yet.

Love, Mom & Dad & Jacob & Molly

after ending a lesson of teaching English to a class of young adults.

College is brotherhood. A MAGIS alum who will call you on a random day and take you out to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory; a group of guys who take up an entire pew during Mass at Sacred Heart Chapel; a brother who will be in your driveway at 7 a.m. on a Saturday morning to wake you up to serve at a food pantry in Hollywood.

College is making friends and

seeing them transform into family.

It is the person you meet on the first day of orientation who becomes your best friend. It is the roommate who listens to your dreams and does not make fun of you for listening to Jack Johnson as you fall asleep.

They are the travel buddies who adventure to Spain, Portugal, Chile and New Orleans with you. Or the friend who knows everything about you, because he went to St. Anthony’s, Seattle Prep and LMU with you.

College is calling mom and dad on walks back to my dorm, to my apartment and to my house. Telling them how my day went, seeing how they’re doing and telling them I’m thankful and that I love them.

College is working hard. Two months ago, a job interviewer asked me, “as a teacher, how are you going to gain the respect of students and parents if you look like you’re 14?”

I replied with a straight face, “I’ll show up every day and work my hardest, and the rest will take care of itself.” And then I laughed. One month later I got the job.

College wasn’t the best four years of my life. Because the next four years will be better and the four years after that will be even better.

So, what’s the definition of college? I don’t have any words for you; I’d rather just smile.

This is the opinion of Kevin Cacabelos, a senior Spanish and history double major from Seattle, Wash. Tweet comments to @LALoyolan or email kcacabelos@ theloyolan.com