Thursday, March 27, 2008
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PERSPECTIVES | 7
Times marches on St. Patrick’s Day the American way
NEWS EDITOR JLH729@CABRINI.COM
When I think of the semester coming to a close and the end of my third year in college near completion, I am reminded how quickly time goes by and how precious each moment really is. Sometimes I think we get so caught up in the daily routine of life that we bypass the simple, more beautiful aspects of the world that surrounds us. We seem so conditioned to follow a certain plan or manufactured blueprint that most of our lives consist of the constant battle to advance and survive in a world where the cost of living continues to rise and success equals money. From the time we are born, we are thrown into a process in which we spend the first quarter of our lives going through schooling just to be able to eventually obtain a position in the career field of our choice and commit our time to advancing in that field. In the process, years fly by and time keeps ticking. It would be hypocritical of me to pretend as if I am not so caught up in my work at times that I forget to stop and take in all that surrounds me day to day. However, I have made a conscious effort to enjoy the special moments and to take those opportunities to slow time down once in a while. We all must survive in a world where the pace is predetermined and rapidly increases before our eyes. The one thing that remains consistent is the amount
of time that continues to pass. Life is not a dress rehearsal and we only get one chance to navigate through this journey and take full advantage of what life has to offer us. There is so much more than we sometimes take the time to notice whether it’s the beauty of a sunset on the drive home from work or the serene silence heard after a beautiful snowstorm. I remember looking forward to important milestones when I was a little girl. The first that comes to mind is my 16th birthday. It always seemed so far away but then it came and I was driving my new car off the lot before I knew it. After that, I prepared for the excitement of the big 18th birthday that everyone always talked about. Getting accepted into a college and eventually celebrating my 21st birthday seemed so far off that I didn’t even bother getting excited. After all, everyone always told me how young I still was. Now my 21st birthday is in the past, I live in my own apartment and the next milestones seem larger than life. I look ahead to graduation next year and the departure into the world of my undetermined career. While my 16th birthday floats further away, marriage and a family become milestones that are closer within my view. In the past, these milestones never really made me think twice about life and how quickly it has gone. Although I am still young, I realize how quickly those future milestones will mark their presence in my life. As I close out my third year in college, I realize what a journey lies ahead of me but how precious the moments along the way will truly be.
LIL LY GUEST WRITER PLILLY01@GMAIL.COM
St. Patrick’s Day appears to be associated worldwide with a number of things, the foremost being an association with all things Irish. The phrase “everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day” does appear to be true as St. Patrick ’s Day celebrations are held in every corner of the globe from Ireland to America to Argentina. Right or wrong, the day also seems to be celebrated by having a beer or four. It is for these reasons that I have decided to write a few lines to provide a better insight into the feast day, and
indeed the man that was St. Patrick. Most people will be surprised to learn that St. Patrick himself was not actually Irish. He is widely believed to have come from Roman Britain where he was captured by Irish raiders and brought to work as a sheep farmer in Ireland. He later escaped home to his family, yet returned to Ireland to preach the word of God. He is widely acclaimed as being the man who brought Christianity to Ireland and it was for this reason that the 17th of March, the day on which he died, was made the national holiday for Irish people and the world wide day for celebrating all things Irish. St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated in many ways. Most people who have ever celebrated it would agree that it is indeed “one hell of a party.” Back home, I celebrate the day for the most part with friends and family. This normally begins with
a trip to mass, as indeed the day is one of Catholic obligation in Ireland. Then, we usually travel to Bundoran Co. Donegal, a small seaside town to see the St Patrick ’s Day parade. Celebration of St. Patrick’s Day in the north of the country is sporadic as most Protestants do not celebrate the holiday, and thus many Catholics have to travel southwards to celebrate the feast of the patron saint. After the parade, my friends and I usually go out and celebrate in traditional Irish style. It was thus of great interest to me to see how St. Patrick’s day would be celebrated in a different country, especially in the United States. What to do for St. Patrick ’s Day was something I had thought a bit about. I turned down the chances of going to Boston and New York with some of my Irish friends, instead to celebrate the day here at Cabrini and attending the festivities
in Conshohocken. Many American friends of mine thought I was crazy but I reasoned with myself that I spent plenty of St. Patrick’s Days with Irish friends and this was perhaps my only opportunity to spend it with Americans. Going to the parade in Conshocoken was a great experience. I thought it was great the way in which Americans in even a small town celebrated the day in such a fine way. One could almost be forgiven for feeling at home with such a fine display. The parade was good, the people were friendly and the beer was flowing. As we say back home the “craic was ninety” which basically means it was one hell of a good time. After the parade we continued to celebrate and a great day was had by all. St .Patrick’s Day 2008 will not be one I forget. It is definitely a fond memory of my time here.
Phillies announce no college nights IN MY OPINION
NICHOLAS PITTS ASST. SPORTS EDITOR NDP722@CABRINI.EDU
As a habitual Philly sports Web site checker, I was happy to see that the promotion schedule for the Phillies has been recently posted. I could just taste those semi-gross and yet irresistible dollar dogs as I skimmed the list looking for the first of the college night series. I got to the bottom before I realized, they were missing. At first I was angered. I ran down the hallways knocking on every Phillies fan’s door and spread the terrible news. The Phillies did away with their college nights. No more really cheap 500-level tickets. No more
nights out at the Phillies with friends from other colleges throughout the area. No more cool free t-shirts. Of all of the things I have to look forward to for the spring, I’m going to have to say that college night at the ballpark was pretty high on the list. I thought for a while about why they would discontinue such a thing. Every time I went it seemed as though they sold the upper levels out, which they don’t usually do otherwise. It was definitely a successful promotion. Then, I remembered what a typical college night at the Phillies game is like. The last of these that I was in attendance for, I ended up losing count of the number of drunken underage college kids who got kicked out of the game. It was just a big 500level drunken dollar dog fight. People threw hot dogs on the field and cursed at the not-so-intimidating ballpark security guards. None of the college crowd really looked like they were
PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER/MCT
there to watch the game but rather to just get totally hammered. It’s really a shame that it came to this. I sat there thinking to myself at the last college night that it’s a wonder they still have these things, as I counted the number of empty beer bottles dropping into the lower seating sections of the park. It is a pretty big cliché to say that college kids don’t have a lot of money because of the rising tuition costs for school. We were not making a very good case for ourselves when were paying our 21-andolder friends to buy ball park beer for everyone. That is, ball park beer at $5 a cup! I on the other hand, don’t particularly enjoy shelling
out $30 for a decent seat when just last year, $10 got me down on the first level with my college ID. I suppose that in a sad way, we don’t deserve to have college nights. I mean, it’s your typical case of how college-age kids, let’s say 18-22, are a harm to society and we aren’t worthy of anything nice because we screw it up anyway. But what about those who really wanted to go spend a night at Citizen’s Bank Park? My friends and I froze our butts off in early April supporting the Phils. Now, I’m not really sure whether or not I’ll go to a game this season. Not because I can’t afford to go, but simply because it just won’t be the same.
Letter to the Editor Teachings from Pope provide ‘clarity and freedom’ for gay community To the Editor: In response to your Feb. 28 article and editorial about the gay community at Cabrini being in need of support, I wanted to offer an invitation to teachings that, in my own experience and that of my husband’s, provided support, clarity and freedom to us as sexual beings.
The teachings are within the Catholic church and especially highlighted in a body of work written by Pope John Paul II called Theology of the Body. The Theology of the Body speaks to the dignity of every human being. Cabrini is a Catholic college and I believe the campus community at large owes the entire student
body information about sexuality, chastity, contraception, marriage and more from the Catholic perspective which, many times, is gravely misunderstood and miscommunicated. The Catholic faith requires us to love our neighbors as ourselves. That is the basis of an ‘education of the heart.’ My heart aches for
anyone who is suffering, unsupported, harassed or unaccepted because of their sexual behavior whether they are dealing with same-sex attraction, sexual promiscuity or questioning their gender roles. My hope is that each individual can truly feel loved by Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church. Before turning to secu-
lar solutions like a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or questioning group, I believe it is incumbent upon the Cabrini Community to delve into the holistic teaching that our Catholic faith offers which protects our minds, hearts, bodies, souls and relationships. My husband and I would be glad to sponsor a Theology of the Body speaker for
Cabrini’s campus or to make tapes and books on this topic available for anyone interested in learning more. - Kimberly Savage Editor in Chief, Loquitur, 1992; Alum, Class of 1993.