BACK IN THE SUNSHINE

A college student finds her faith again

BY MOLLY KING

I squeezed out of the tiny elevator, onto the fifth floor, as my Spanish home-stay hostess gave me the tour of her colonial-style apartment. I spied my room. With one window to the cold winter world outside and a bed, I could tell it would be my sanctuary for the next three months away from home. She left me to unpack. I heaved my suitcase onto the bed and unzipped it to find, on top of all the clothes, the pink journal my mom had made for me the summer before. Clippings of quotes from the Bible and Science and Health filled the pages and were generously balanced by many stickers of flowers and cheerful-looking shapes.

Even though I'd traveled across the world to study in Spain for the winter of my junior year of college, and finally had the independence I'd wanted for so long, my lack of excitement seemed to mirror the low gray sky outside. Ever since my mom had passed on the previous fall, things hadn't felt the same. It seemed as though I was glazed over, just watching life pass me by. I went from someone who was thriving at school, sports, and full of a sense of belonging, to feeling like all the sunshine had been squeezed out of me.

And I really wasn't letting God come in and help reconcile my doubts and fears. I often wondered if God had somehow failed to care for my family and me. It was as if my whole world, which used to line up perfectly, had dislodged just enough so that there was now one vital piece missing.

Send a comment to the editors

We'd love to hear from you!

Easily submit your testimonies, articles, and poems online.

Submit

BACK IN THE SUNSHINE

We'd love to hear from you!

Sign up for unlimited access