Hello, my name is Nick Rodriguez, and this is my first blog post in the Marsh Vocation Internship blog.
I am a Junior in the College of Engineering studying Computer Engineering. I have spent time in leadership as the Vice-President of SojournBU, a Christian student organization in Boston University’s wonderful, vibrant, and diverse spiritual life. I love reading theology, philosophy of religion, and books surrounding the psychology behind the various facets of life that give us human beings meaning. I recently finished reading How to Be Here by Rob Bell, Love Sense by Sue Johnson, and I’m working my way through Insurrection by Peter Rollins. Nothing lifts my spirits like a good book and a nice cup of coffee on a cloudy day.
I really love technology, and that’s why I am a Computer Engineering major. I came to this inspiring school in this wonderful city because my siblings came up here (although they went to different schools), because I found it awesome that BU had both a College of Engineering and a School of Theology, and also because of my girlfriend, Jen. She and I applied mostly to various schools in Boston and the surrounding area, hoping to increase the probabilistic chance of being near each other in college. I ended up here, and she ended up at Northeastern. Now, several years later, I still see her every day and I am thankful for that.
I was also a former Student Advisor for BU’s Summer Orientations for incoming freshman. There, I helped in academic advising, and I was one of the many student representatives to set the tone for Boston University’s global and pluralistic culture. There, I (hopefully) worked to help the nerves of incoming freshman, to meet them where they are and be there for them, and change their anxiety into excitement.
During that work last summer, I spent time meeting many different students from different cultures, personal identities, interests, religious identities, and societies. It was incredible. I felt like we were all different paintbrushes, painting our different stories and identities onto the great canvas that is our school and our city. I can’t wait to see where everyone I meet here will go on with their lives; I genuinely believe that every staff member, every student, and every leader I met is going to do incredible things someday.
Anyways, I am also an introvert. Some may describe me as awkward. It took a lot of energy and effort to be a student leader during Summer Orientation. To be completely honest, it was incredibly hard and scary for me. I recall thinking to myself as I met my fellow orientation staff members, ‘I do not belong as a staff member here…what do I even have to offer?’ Several months later, I do actually believe I did a great job as a Student Advisor. I may not be the most social individual and I may not be the toughest, or the coolest person, but I poured my heart and soul out for my fellow leaders and for the students. And, I feel like sometimes that is all a person really needs to do. Sometimes, being truly there for someone and being present for everyone around you and being able to let them know that you have their back, that you got them – sometimes that is all a leader needs to do. Showing someone that you genuinely care about them makes all the difference.
Anyways, I am sitting here in the Science and Engineering Library at BU and I’m writing this blog and ironically, this song by Jon Bellion titled “He is The Same” is playing. And the song discusses how the artist has grown as an artist, and his fan base has grown and he has gained some fame and fortune, and yet, as he sings, he says “Nothing has changed, he is the same”. Jon Bellion is the same Jon Bellion. This song speaks to me.
I mean, here I am. I was a former student leader at BU’s summer orientation. I made a lot of new close friendships. I have settled into a few leadership positions this fall. I’ve grown as an engineering student. I feel closer to the Ground of my Being. I can tell I have positively impacted many students as I can see by the many people I say hello to everyday, and because I can see my students settling into college safely and ready to take on the coursework. But, at the end of the day, I am still the same Nick Rodriguez. To be honest, I did have to act incredibly social all summer, but even now I am still fairly introverted, and somewhat scared of people. It’s incredible because I know I have grown, and I can see myself growing, but I am still the same Nick.
I honestly have no idea what I am doing, but I think sometimes, just like I had to be truly present as a student advisor, and be there for everyone around me, I now just have to truly be present with my friendships, with my family, with my coursework, with this internship, with this student leadership position in SojournBU, and just as another human being moving through existence on this planet. I know I have changed, for the better, because I still see myself: I am still Nick Rodriguez. What I mean by this is that I can tell that I have grown as a person – that growth is the change I have experienced. I haven’t lost a sense of myself, I did not feel myself slipping from the things I care about, the identities I cherish in myself, the people I care about, and from myself, but I can see that my perspectives and identities have grown within themselves and that I am still making the same strokes as the paintbrush I am on this canvas. I can see that my paintbrushes have added more to the canvas, and that they have somehow become more lively and beautiful. I think I have become more confident and I have learned that I can have a deeply positive impact on those around me.
This summer made me more alive and I am excited to see where this school year takes me.