Mysteries Revealed

48 Hours. Kairos. Halftime. There are so many different retreat opportunities here at Boston College that sometimes it is difficult to keep them all straight.

Two aspects of BC retreats that keep them fairly similar are the elements of escape and reflection.

"[Retreats] are a time to intellectualize, socialize, and conceptualize what's going on in your life," says Mike Sacco, assistent director of Residental Life for Resident Student Formation.

"I think with today's pace, today's technology, and especially with the cultural influences of New England and Boston, we move so fast. I think that's why these retreats are so popular - students realize that," says Sacco.

OK, so students know they need to slow it down and get away. But which is the right retreat?

The retreat opportunities begin freshman year with 48 Hours, sponsored by the office of First Year Experience (FYE). 48 Hours offers freshman a weekend away from their hectic schedules and allows them time to explore the pressures as well as the joys of being a freshman.

Ethan Sullivan, FYE assistant director, says the main goal of the retreat is to frontload the wisdom of the experienced. "When you have a conversation with a senior or junior you often hear them say 'I wish I knew the ropes freshman year. I would be in much better shape right now.' So we decided, why not frontload the wisdom so that the freshman can benefit from the experiences of the juniors and seniors."

Set up with this goal in mind, 48 Hours retreat leaders share stories of their college experiences in the hopes that freshman will learn from the mistakes of others.

The talks are centered on five important themes: freedom and responsibility, academics, co-curricular life, social pressures and friendships, and relationships.

During their weekend away, students benefit from the opportunity to connect with people, resources, and fellow peers.

"48 Hours is what really kicked off my BC experience in terms of getting involved," says Margaret Nuzzolese, A&S '06.

"The upperclassmen mentors tell you about the opportunities that they wish they had. It's just really inspirational and motivational, because it's like, yeah, I'm doing well so far, or I haven't been doing well so far and I want to do better. It just makes you want to continue to explore because there are so many opportunities at this school," she says.

"48 Hours was amazing because it helped me realize that other people were going through the same things I was - forced triples, papers, adjusting to not having Mom's home cooking, and I was able to get any negative things I was experiencing out of my head and focus on the positives," says Kelly Marshall, A&S '08, about her trip on the retreat earlier this year.

Sullivan says that, perhaps most importantly, the retreat lets freshman form habits about the life they want to live. "It's not like a lightening bolt or an 'ah-ha moment.' It's a process. They've learned tools for reflecting. How to deal with all the noise in their heads," he says, "Just that idea that we don't have to have it all figured out."

The process this retreat tries to emphasize in freshman is carried out year-round in the FYE office. A great deal of effort and energy are put into ensuring the first year spent at BC is as productive and informative as possible.

Aside from organizing 48 Hours, FYE arranges freshman orientations, Courage to Know classes, and several other initiatives and social gatherings. "These programs explore the intellectual, social, and spiritual landscapes of BC while helping to ease the transition into college," says Sullivan.

Like 48 Hours, the Halftime retreat focuses on the integration of discernment in the lives of BC students. Unlike the freshman retreat, Halftime is more about transitioning into life after college. Because of its unique slant, it focuses on sophomores, juniors, and seniors.

"Instead of thinking about you in relation to Boston College, at Halftime you think about you in a relation to how to discern, how to figure out how you want to be, both at BC academically, but maybe even more important, how you want to be once you leave BC" Sacco says.

Sponsored by the Intersections program, Halftime explores three basic questions during its three days in the mountains of New Hampshire and Vermont: What gives you joy? What are you good at? And, does anyone need you to do it?

In answering these questions, Halftime gives its retreat members three "be's" - be attentive, be reflective, and be loving - to help them live these questions in their everyday lives.

"I think the primary value in Halftime is that you begin to, and really learn how to, listen to yourself," says Emily Stanger, A&S '05. "Doing that is going to make your college years more full and it's going to help you to continue to plan out the rest of your life. Just knowing more about yourself and where you want to be and where you're most joyful and fulfilled. And I don't think that could be a bad thing for anyone."

Stanger says she enjoyed the retreat because it was not intimidating."It's a very low pressure retreat open to people of every faith and every belief system. You don't have to come in as a very reflective person or to have even thought about any of this before. It doesn't matter."

A very important aspect of the retreat is the "Sweeps."

The "Sweeps" are the faculty members who attend the retreat and share their own experiences with their vocational choices. "I always think this is a very important aspect of the retreat because it's looking even more forward into the future and it helps us realize that these people, who you respect, didn't have it all figured out either and they had to go through this too. And they still do go through it," says Stanger.

The idea that this vocational discernment is an on-going life process of self-discovery is particularly emphasized throughout the retreat.