summer – Julianna Stratton '26

August 29, 2024

Here we are, back again!

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of activities and planning as the Kimball captains moved back to campus, and classes begin. I’ve been thoroughly enjoying being back in the Eastern time zone with all my friends after a summer spent in northern Washington State interning at a Wildlife Rehabilitation Center.

this is where I was working this summer!

Thanks to the Crusader Internship Fund, my summer company was mostly baby animals, ranging from squirrels, opossums and bunnies to raccoons, river otters, hawks, owls, and harbor seal pups. Needless to say, as a pre-vet student, I had the time of my life, and as a Midwesterner, my mind was blown by the state park land and mountains I got to hike.

Back on the East coast again, I’m settling back into the rhythm of work, class and studying! I’ve got a busy and exciting semester lined up for myself, including taking on responsibility for the orchestra e-board and the music department advisory council, and a new job as an attendant in the psychology lab. I’m also back on SGA for another year (yay!) serving as the director of sustainability on the Cabinet. Along with all that, I’m taking five classes again this semester: orgo ii, political psychology, cognitive neuroscience, a music composition seminar, and a seminar on the evolution of medicine in the Western World.

So far, I’m really enjoying all of my classes, and am looking forward to what the year has in store for me! With all my friends back from studying abroad, being back on campus here feels like a family reunion. I have an exciting repertoire of Debussy and Beethoven to work through in my cello lessons, a completely unrealistic reading list, and an overstuffed calendar! Here’s to another lovely semester on the hill — I have a feeling it will be the best one yet!

August 23, 2023

Hospes Venit, Christus Venit

Hospes Venit, Christus Venit. When a guest comes, Christ comes. That is the inscription centered above the doors of Kimball dining hall, a familiar site for anyone living on the hill. Much like the Hand of Christ statue, on which I reflected over my very first blog post last year, I did not notice this inscription until today, as I was sitting on Fenwick Porch, marveling at the skyline and beauty of this summer day.

Since I moved back onto campus a week early for Kimball Captain training, I have watched as students slowly trickle back onto campus. Soon, everyone will return, and the hill will once again be crawling with life.

I would be failing in my reputation as a nerd, and, as my Snapchat private story boasts, an “unemployed philosopher” if I did not mention that this sentiment reminded me of a segment from John Donne’s Meditation XVII. He states,

“No man is an island,
Entire of itself,
Every man is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thy friend’s
Or of thine own were:
Any man’s death diminishes me,
Because I am involved in mankind,
And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls;
It tolls for thee.”

If Christ comes with each student, then truly, we are not complete until every student, temporary yet beloved guests on the hill, takes their place back in our community.

Like the inscription, which took me nearly a whole year to notice and read, it is easy to pass over the many parts of the Holy Cross body – that is, the students, staff, faculty, parents, and volunteers that make this campus, and this college, what it is. To say, “I am involved in mankind,” is a Jesuit sentiment, if there ever was one, and yet, one that I often could not truthfully use to describe myself.

My resolution for the school year, a resolution I invite you to join me in, is this: to not be an island. Rather, let us all strive to be a part of the main, together involved in mankind, mourning each loss and celebrating each joy in the community as if it were our own. For now, though, it is time to celebrate the return of Christ to campus in the form of each one of us! Let us celebrate each new and returning student we encounter with the enthusiasm, hope, and love of God that we would give to Christ. Truly, could there be a happier way to begin the year, than with the promise of Christ’s return, and the reunion of the Holy Cross body?

my view from Fenwick Porch, as I noticed the inscription!

June 11, 2023

We Came, WARSAW, We Conquered

As promised, hello from Poland! I have spent the last two weeks with my classmates exploring Warsaw, Lublin, and Lodz, visiting the historical and cultural landmarks, attending class discussions, and of course, eating some very delicious food. I am taking a course entitled, “History, Memory, and the Holocaust,” in which we are examining the politics and factors that determine how and what we choose to remember and memorialize in history. As I write this, we are heading to the last city we’ll visit, Krakow.

Due to a heavy course load and pre-vet requirements, I won’t be able to study abroad for a semester or a year. The Maymester program has offered me the opportunity to still travel and learn – an incredible, life-changing opportunity that I will be forever grateful to have experienced. An introvert at heart, the trip has certainly demanded of me a newfound adventurous nature, but the results have been far better than I could have expected.

While we spend weekdays as a class, visiting relevant sites, memorials, museums, and taking tours of the city, the weekends are free for us to explore on our own and in smaller groups – and explore I have! I’ve spent my days wandering through the cities, visiting various churches (they are all GORGEOUS), and of course, being as much of a tourist as possible.

Someone out there said that pictures are worth a thousand words, so… I’ll let you all see for yourselves what I’ve been up to 🙂