Photography by Daniel Lambert Written by Cassie Acosta She made her way from a horse-riding country gal from the hub of Tennessee to a teen pop sensation practically overnight. Although she tried desperately to separate her life on stage from her life as a daughter, sister and friend, the weight of the world rested heavily on her shoulders. As her talent continued to grow, so did her place in the public eye. She went from the girl next door to the object of every little girl’s affection, as her fun and catchy songs captured the hearts of many across the world. Suddenly, what used to be her private life became…
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Great Expectations: Growing Into Reality
Written by Deborah Kwak “God knew what He was cooking,” says Dr. John McKinley, professor of biblical and theological studies at Biola. Ever since he was a teenager, McKinley had been on the road to becoming a professional cyclist. His identity, dreams and ambitions were wrapped around the world of competitive cycling for years, but the trajectory of his life began to change. From the ages of 19-21, McKinley learned what it meant to be a Christian. Right out of college he became a high school history teacher, and then decided to serve in Campus Crusade for Christ for two years. While contemplating what the “Christian ideal” actually meant, he…
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As You Are: Freedom from the Personal Fable
Photography by Hannah Caprara Written by Kahlie Cowell Dorothy Barr remembers a time in her life when she questioned herself. Her childhood was spent growing up on an isolated farm lost amidst the plains of Wisconsin. Following the death of her husband, Barr’s mother struggled to make ends meet. For Barr, this made affording college impossible. As the youngest of her siblings and unable to attend college, she never regarded herself as unique. Later in life, after she married and had kids of her own, Barr’s struggles with self-doubt began to manifest themselves. “When my husband and I moved, I knew no one in the new area,” Barr recalls. “The…
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Hello, My Name is ESFJ
Photography by Meagan Garton Written by Heather Pape You look into a mirror and see yourself; you see your appearance, you see your reflection. This is you. But is this really you? Or is this just a single perspective of who you are? This same concept can be applied to personality tests. At Biola, many professors ask their students to take personality surveys like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator or the StrengthsFinder test in order to help their students figure out who they are and what they want to do. However, it is easy to become defined by these results or find identity in them. In actuality, these tests can only…
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A Wedding to Follow
Written by Ian Mayta Luis Daniel Arias, a high school student at the American School in Honduras, queued behind a line of boys and girls holding hands. He waited patiently to be “married” by an upperclassman dressed as a minister, who distributed plastic rings and made-up wedding certificates. In line with other student couples, Arias held the hand of the girl next to him tautly. This event was part of “Carnival” — an annual junior-senior fundraising event. This might be an unfamiliar and bizarre scene to the average American high schooler or Biolan. Yet, during my sophomore year at Biola, girls and guys wearing wedding gowns and suits had a…
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See Me, Not My Disability
Photography by Christina Bryson Written by Sarah Huffman Students often take full use of their bodies for granted. Instead of complaining about having only fifteen minutes to stop at the food truck for lunch between classes, Victoria Nuñez, a freshman biology major who suffers from cerebral palsy, has to plan how she’ll get to class on time carrying a backpack full of textbooks and using her walker. Cerebral palsy, a group of motor conditions that causes physical disabilities in development, particularly in body movement, has been a constant struggle for Nuñez. But instead of complaining, she has begun to look toward God. She says she was able to seek God so…
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The Color of Absence: Life After Loss
Photography by Jaicee Almond Written by Cassandra Acosta Five years ago, Joe Gonzalez was busy focusing on his sophomore year of high school and enjoying the life of a teenage boy. Though his aunt had been sick with cancer for quite a few months, he had great hope that she would make a full recovery; not knowing that only months later, she would go home to the Lord. “My aunt was more of a mother to me than an aunt. She went to every baseball game and every kind of celebration. As she began to get sick, I sat by her bedside every single day, reminiscing on good times and…
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Grad Meets World
Photography by Emily Cariaga Written by Heather Pape Brenda Velasco had known since age seven that she wanted to be a corporate attorney. She had a plan to achieve her dream job by 25, get married at 27 and have kids at 32. Instead, Velasco graduated from Biola in 1999 and went on to work in communications and marketing at a real estate agency in Whittier, and after some twists and turns, she ended up in the position of assistant director with Biola’s University Communications and Marketing. This is not at all what she had planned Some students embark on a different career path because of the decisions they make,…
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5 Tips to Land Your Dream Job
Written by Heather Pape 1. Intern– This is one of the most important things you can do because it provides job experience before you graduate. It can also help you meet people who can help you get a job later. Take advantage of these while you are still in school since most internships are only offered if you are receiving college credit. 2. Network– Meet people every time you get the opportunity. You never know who might have the “in” you are looking for. Collect business cards, pay attention to the people in your major, and communicate with your department and see if any alumni have contacted them with job…
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The Forgotten Side of Memory
Photography by Christina Bryson Written by Kahlie Colwell Pause a moment and imagine your life without memory. Perhaps it goes something like this: to begin with, you do not recognize your surroundings. Determining your location is impossible because you cannot recollect how you arrived there. Furthermore, you are unable to seek assistance from friends because you do not know who your friends are. Did you ever even have any? Desperate, you turn to the stranger next to you, hoping he might direct you. But when you open your mouth, nothing comes out. You have forgotten how to speak. Of course, directions are irrelevant anyway because you cannot remember the address…
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As Dreams Grow Up
Photography by Alissa Sandoval People live to make their imaginations come true, but does it always happen this way? A childhood dream can change with time. Some people decide to focus on an entirely new career then what they initially thought. Students and faculty share their vision and how it has changed or stayed the same over the years. “My childhood dream job was probably [to be] a trucker. Now, I am a computer scientist which I guess means that was just a childhood thing. Bigger and better things came along, I guess.” – Michael Prigge, junior, computer science. “My childhood dream job was to be on TV. After that…
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Tech-spectations: Living Up to the Digital Standard
Photography by Alissa Sandoval Written by Rebecca Nakashima “Name me one thing, one, that we’ve gained from technology.” Greg Kinnear’s character incredulously asks Meg Ryan in the 1998 romantic comedy “You’ve Got Mail.” In the film, Ryan’s character enters the exciting new world of email and eventually develops more of a relationship with her online pen pal and the “you’ve got mail” screen on her laptop than with her real-life boyfriend. Thankfully for her, Tom Hanks is the one on the other side of the screen and they eventually meet up in perfect Hollywood fashion. However, before his untimely exit, Kinnear points to his then-girlfriend’s computer in frustration and says, “You think…
