"Not About THAT Life"!: Dorm Life and Dealing with Difficult People

  Over the past three weeks I have been busy doing homework, studying, spending quiet time with Jesus and moving out of my dorm into my new suite. Moved out, the semester just started? Yes I won't go in to too much detail about what happened to cause me to leave the dorm that I was in, but I wanted to share my experience with you on living a college dorm. Naturally I am shy person but once you get to know me I am one of the craziest people you could ever meet. I don't consider myself an introvert because I actually like being in some social settings; and then later crawl into my room, lock my door, and isolate myself from the world. I was an only child for twelve years until my brother was born, and I've always had my own room to myself. My freshman year I was so excited about the idea of  the college experience, living in a dorm and sharing a room with a total stranger. No really I was! Freshman year was okay, but not perfect and I learned a lot from my first year staying in a college dorm. Fast forward to Sophomore year, I was given the option to move in with a friend I knew, and thought to myself maybe this year might be different?

Two weeks ago I had an issue with my roommate which ended in a very negative way. I learned my lesson from the experience and I am using my mistakes as a learning experience to help improve my character. I would ask God why am I going through this bad roommate cycle again? Yes my behavior was unacceptable, but she was wrong too? Or, I am doing everything I can to bring peace to this situation. Lies! I was lying to myself and pointing out anything and everything that she was doing wrong instead of correcting my own mistakes. I was a hypocrite and was believing in my own lies. Whether or not it was my fault that we could not get along with each other, I had said something that I could never take back and probably will never be erased when that person thinks about me. I never wanted to be the one who hurts people because I am hurt. It sucks when you sit down and think about a situation and say to yourself and what the heck was I thinking? I easily could have let the situation go and move on with my life. But no, I had to get revenge and show this person that I am not the one t argue!  My character, my attitude, my happiness, EVERYTHING was centered around this one person and I was no longer in touch with the person that I was supposed to be. I stopped reading my Bible, prayed less, and was using the word as a shield to continue my sin because I 'knew the word.' And because I knew the word, no one could check me or use it against me.WRRRONNG! What I am trying to say is, don't turn into this person! Seriously I don't even know how I transformed into this bitter and selfish woman. I moved out of the room, because staying in the room was making me more stressed out than ever and I knew I had to separate myself from the situation in order to grow. 

Looking back I know I made the right decision to move out because my attitude was not improving and I have more peace with myself and who I want to be. Just my opinion but living in a suite is way more peaceful than sharing a dorm room. I can work out in my room without any interruptions, do my random dance parties, and I have a sense of responsibility cleaning my bathroom and the dinning area. And to be honest as a quiet person, I think having your own space is great, but it does get a little lonely sometimes. In a regular dorm you are forced to be social and step out your comfort zone, which challenged my communication skills and helped me grow. I've learned that in dealing with difficult people that not everything action deserves a reaction. Sometimes it’s just best to pray, walk out of the room, and focus on something else before you say something that you don’t mean. And not just in dealing with roommates but everywhere we go. Everyday we are challenged to take fight or flight when dealing with a difficult person. You could pretend to ignore the person and continue with your own life. Or get involved, hurt the person and yourself in the process, and leave feeling embarrassed. Be the better person and make the decision to give a little more heart than mind because honestly everybody is going through something. There are still good people out there, but you have to put your pride on the side to understand some people. Because it's not all about US! Read Ephesians 5!

Thank you for reading this post!

Peace & Harmony,

Shay