ASB has been a core component of my undergraduate experience, because it has not only altered how I view and relate to myself, but also how I view and relate to the world. For the past three years, ASB has had a remarkable way of meeting me in the midst of my brokenness and supplying me with the time and space to put myself back together. My freshman year, I was struggling with feeling alien on our campus. Although I had a large group of friends and had fallen in love with the Vanderbilt community, I still felt like I was somehow not a “true” Vanderbilt student since certain lifestyle choices didn’t align with the campus majority. My first ASB made me realize what walls I had been holding up, and hearing life maps made me feel more connected to the Vanderbilt community as a whole. My second ASB came when I was in a rough place emotionally- I was overcommitted and struggling with feelings of loneliness and depression. Due to a myriad of factors including us all getting the stomach bug, my second ASB taught me that if I was open and honest about my struggles, I had a strong network to support and love me. Lastly, the other participants on my third ASB helped me realize what specific strengths …show more content…
The thing about ASB is that it isn't just the service or the life maps or the full-engagement policies, because many organizations offer bits and pieces of what ASB does. The thing that keeps me coming back to ASB is the whole experience, and when I considered not doing ASB, especially since I'm technically a first year graduate student in addition to being a senior, I was honestly sad. ASB has been such a huge part of my Vanderbilt experience, and I would be honored to have the chance to hear eleven more life maps, to engage with one more issue with which I am unfamiliar, and to build meaningful relationships in the community and with site