It’s easy to get lost in the chaotic swirl of “the Wake bubble.” Our student body is constantly immersed in classes, clubs, extracurriculars … shall we go on? So how exactly do we escape this never-ending cycle of college life and, more importantly, break out into our surrounding community?
Getting in touch with the outside world may require some extra time (wait, what’s that?!), but it’s definitely worth it. In a campus as close-knit as ours, reality seems to take a back seat to our Wake lives filled with deadlines, meetings and tests.
So what’s the best way to escape the demands of Work Forest? We suggest starting with finding a way to make a difference in someone else’s life. Even if you’re a freshman cursing your lack of transportation, Wake provides more than enough activities and organizations that can point you to countless volunteer opportunities. The Office of Volunteer Services on campus is the perfect starting point to discovering your passions. Take on our “Pro Humanitate” motto and build houses for Habitat in Humanity in Winston-Salem with friends, or even go global with a Wake-led service trip to Nicaragua or South Africa. Another student favorite is Wake’s Alternative Break trips that explore national parks, aid hurricane relief projects and complete social projects across the nation. Check the community boards in your residence hall to find out where the next one is headed!
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Ok, so it’s time for some brutal honesty. We may sometimes view Winston-Salem as a dowdy college town with not much going on besides the weekend parties off Polo and Reynolda. But the “city of the arts” remains a North Carolina gem. The variety of artistic and cultural capacity that downtown Winston provides is another way to experience life (and art) outside our own and to appreciate something in a non-academic context. Watch a play at the Stevens Center. Peruse the galleries of the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art. Relish in Christmas nostalgia with a performance of classics like The Nutcracker by the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (those kids are super talented!). Supporting the arts is such a huge part of Wake life, so it only makes sense to reciprocate that sentiment by further exploring our surrounding city.
The Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art (kenjihirata.com)
I know, I know—we WorkForest students already have enough on our plate. Sometimes the thought of leaving campus for even an hour seems to hinder our carefully constructed plans for Sunday’s procrastination. But another way we can pop our bubble is by plunging ourselves in another one. Take a second from your homework (or Twitter) to check out what is going on in life— whether that’s in Winston or not. Pick up a newspaper. Turn on the television. Surf the internet to get caught up on current events. You’d be surprised how much you’re actually missing. And if you totally can’t pry yourself away from cyber stalking that cute guy in your Chem class, download the Washington Post Social Reader app to your Facebook. Based on your interests and likes, the app will stream pertinent news articles straight to you – so handy. This innovative way of spreading the news allows you to receive little tidbits of current events and share them with friends, so now you won’t feel like your only social knowledge worthy of sharing is what’s going on Friday night.
Whether it’s taking full advantage of volunteering, appreciating art, or just keeping up with the times, venturing outside of Wake can be a necessary breath of fresh air that keeps us sane in our beautiful little bubble. So get out there and show the world that Wake doesn’t just go from our dorms to class to Starbucks and back, and use all your available opportunities! After all, we’re going to have to leave Wake sometime – might as well know how to live outside the bubble!
*Photography by Melissa Boice