Unseen love

AYC 2013
Unseen Love

Archdiocesan Youth Conference

Speakers

1. Jackie Francois - So amazing! She put all of my ideas that I have ever had in my head into one big summary. It all made sense, perfectly. If any of ya'll felt the same way, please do comment with advice, input, whatever :) I absolutely loved when she showed the song lyrics and explained how that version of love was fake and full of lust. She then proceeded to say that our mission is to get to heaven, and help others along the way. Then, when she put up the lyrics to the song "I will wait" by Mumford and Sons, everybody understood the difference and I could tell that a lot of people were like "Hmm..I never realized how these lyrics I listen to affect who I am and what I do."  All the girls were freaking out because it was so cute :) (well, at least I was) I know it affected me, yes I have always listened to Christian music, but for those of you who know me I have started to listen to country a lot more which isn't bad, you just have to watch out for those types of songs and make sure you know what true love is. Overall, I loved loved loved her talk, and I hope many of you did as well.


2. Ben Walther- His story really affected me. Knowing that he went through so much, and just a couple people being nice to him changed his life forever is so cool. It really shows you that a smile can change many things, I usually don't smile a lot but I am starting to more. It really does make a difference. I know I have felt unwanted before like many of us have, but you just have to remind yourself that God put us all here for a reason, to serve others, and once you start doing it, it is addictive (in a good way :) ) and you just long for more.


3. I forget who this was- Don't do anything bad to me, but I just remember that hilarious Halloween story that someone told. If ya'll know, please comment and let me know! I know everyone in the room was cracking up...I wish something like that would have happened to me (don't call me crazy) but it sounds like fun! Other than the part where the teenage girl showed up at his door....Anyways, I think it is really neat how every one of these speakers told a bunch of funny stories about themselves, I know if we all dig deep we can find something like that to tell. Once they got us listening, they then started to talk about the real stuff, the stuff that matters, and since we were intently listening at that point I'm sure it made a difference in a lot of people. I know it did for me.

      Let's be honest, we all fell asleep at mass...

Okay, maybe not ALL of us, but we were definitely dropping like flies. I would look to my left and someone would be resting their head on a shoulder, and to my right, heads were dropping and then rising very quickly. When Cardinal DiNardo said something like, "And I know we are all very attentive!" people looked up straight at him like he said a bomb is going off in 3 seconds! I know I was nodding off slowly, trying to focus on the Cardinal, but then he got really blurry....and I was questioning whether he was real.

 Of course, we all know we are supposed to be reverent, and I completely respect that. Maybe we should suggest more free time next year. That would be something I think that they should change, and I think most of us agree on that. 

Sessions

There were a bunch of neat sessions and I wish I could have attended all of them, but I enjoyed the ones I picked.

1. Ben Walther - Dude, his music was awesome! For all those who were there, and I know there were a lot of you...it was fun huh?? Most of the time the songs weren't Jesus centered...but...he added one in at the end! By Jesus centered, I mean like Taylor Swift's "You belong with me". Guys, I know a lot of you were singing along, don't be ashamed. For those of you who weren't, you know you were screaming the lyrics in your head. I sort of freaked out when he started playing, "Knee Deep" by the Zac Brown Band :) Pretty awesome song. I also liked when he started talking about his college band...it was a weird name and I don't blame him (who remembers?) Overall, I had a good time at that session, and I hope ya'll did too!

Ya'll are probably thinking, why does she keep on naming the same people over and over again? They were the ones that stuck out the most for me, but everyone else was amazing as well.

2. Grade Sessions - I loved this one as well. I'm sure for all, whether you were an incoming freshman, or becoming a senior (woop woop), you enjoyed it. It was really cool listening to those who volunteered and shared their experiences. It really does help hearing others let you know what they did right and wrong, and what they would have changed. It seemed like every single person who shared had regrets, and so do I. Embrace who you are, help others, love others, be nice, I could go on forever. It really does make a difference, trust me.