Finding what you care about can lead to a life that incites change

As a writer for The Parthenon, I was gathering material for a story I was writing about students making the most of their time at Marshall University. I started off the interview asking the basic questions about the event, program, times and dates. Then I found myself very much in a conversation that was tailored to myself and my experiences at Marshall, but more importantly what I was going to do when I graduated. As a senior, this invades my thoughts more often than not, as most seniors will admit to. We started talking about different internship programs, exchange programs and opportunities that were options for journalism. All of the options not only sounded like a chance of a lifetime but something that I didn't want to miss out on. That's when my interviewee said something that really caught my attention, "College is really what shapes you into the person you want to be."

Sitting in my journalism ethics class later that day, I had another moment that knocked me off my feet. Among the many controversial topics and outlandish situations that we try to decipher in the class, we are asked questions that are intended to really make us think about our answers and decide really what we would do if faced with a similar situation. In the middle of a heated lecture about abortion clinics, the professor stopped and simply asked us, "Is there something that pisses you off?"

This was an odd question, I thought. Of course there are things that make me angry! For example, every single time I try to park at a meter on campus after 9 a.m. or when there is not a single table at Starbucks when I need to study or how people say "Krogers" when only referring to one specific Kroger. Then, he went on to add, "other than what hinders you from getting or doing what you want." Shame was possibly the only thing I felt at that point. How self-consumed was I really that the only things I was willing to make an effort to change were things that were going to directly benefit me in the end? There are so many countless things wrong with the world: human trafficking, world hunger, poverty and violence just to name a few. When I got to campus I was mad I couldn't find a close enough parking meter.

One of the things that growing up has taught me is anger can lead to passion and passion can lead to change. People who aren't passionate don't change the world. It's the people that are willing to get right in the midst of a problem and make things happen that change the world. Growing up in a generation that uses so much social media and sees young entrepreneurs every day, I really believe that one person can make a difference. College is a place that offers a new opportunity around every corner. In my senior year at Marshall, I am the most thankful of the things that forced me out of my comfort zone and caused me to experience new things and find things that I've fallen in love with. Marshall offers such a wide variety of opportunities and experiences that if you concentrate too much on how to find that parking meter, you'll miss out. One of the many lessons that journalism has taught me is that everyone has a voice, and voices make change. So at the end of what seemed like a normal day last week, I was left with the question: What really pisses me off, and how am I going to change it?

Joanies Borders can be contacted at borders9@marshall.edu.