Nelson Searcy, '20

Nelson Searcy poses for a photo in Arrupe Hall.

Junior Nelson Searcy recalls having an attraction to Rockhurst鈥檚 six core values after arriving on campus. One in particular, reflection and discernment, stuck out to him over the others.

鈥淧eople are so caught up in the business of life and they don鈥檛 think to just sit down and give themselves a minute to think from a big picture perspective,鈥 Searcy said.

Sitting down and taking the time to sift through his thoughts has helped Searcy make sure that he鈥檚 paying close attention to the events happening in his life and the ways he鈥檚 responding to them. Reflection and discernment, according to Searcy, is one way to foster personal growth.

鈥淚 love the learning that goes on during the times of reflection and discernment,鈥 Searcy said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think you can get that kind of inner learning from much else.鈥

Wanting to get his thoughts down on paper, Searcy considered journaling.

鈥淲hen I would journal, I would push it off because I wouldn鈥檛 write much down, or I had a lot of incomplete thoughts,鈥 Searcy said.

Searcy took it one step further and decided to start a blog. The process for blogging is different than journaling. Searcy has to create more polished thoughts, reflect more deeply, and curate a post that others can read. Searcy has always loved writing and figured this would be a good avenue to get into it a little more.

鈥淭he biggest inspiration was finding a new and effective way for me to reflect,鈥 Searcy said. 鈥淚 liked to do that but I wasn鈥檛 consistent with journaling.鈥

The topics Searcy writes about usually include situations in his own life that he鈥檚 had time to reflect on and analyze how he has learned from each instance.

Although he considers himself a quick writer, Searcy doesn鈥檛 write a blog post unless it feels right.

鈥淚 really want whatever idea or theme I pick to be really important to me in the moment,鈥 Searcy said.

Searcy keeps track of ideas by listing them in an app on his phone. Coming up with the topic for a post usually takes longer than writing the post itself

鈥淥nce I鈥檓 committed, I鈥檓 just shelling out my thoughts for about an hour and then I proofread it and send it,鈥 Searcy said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 more about making sure the time is right and really feeling passionate about what I am going to write about.鈥

Searcy was never really nervous about sharing his thoughts in a public forum. He thinks that his blog has several things people can take from reading it based on their own perspectives and interpretations of his writing.

鈥淚 want it to be a way for people to think about and help them learn a way that they can reflect because I really recommend it for everybody,鈥 Searcy said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 ok to be open to however far you鈥檙e comfortable with being open. I think that writing is a super good tool for people in many ways.鈥

Being open and vulnerable in this way isn鈥檛 easy. Searcy serves some advice to others who are nervous about sharing their own perspectives.

鈥淭he biggest thing I totally get with people鈥檚 experiences with life is that you want people to be ok with who you are. I think you have to worry about yourself before you can worry about what other people think about who you are,鈥 Searcy said. 鈥淔igure out what you care to create, what鈥檚 your passion and what you want to get out of a blog. If you鈥檙e not really invested in it, it鈥檚 not fun to be creating stuff that isn鈥檛 something you care about creating.鈥

Read Nelson's blog