Welcome to and back to campus! I hope you each had a summer of rest and rejuvenation. Though I have known Yalies for long enough I know that’s not true for at least half of you! In these last moments before school starts, I hope you can take those deep breaths and spend time thinking about where you will
build in time for reflection. Today is a new beginning as we leap into the unknown that this year carries. I’d like to offer you the words of Irish poet, priest, and Celtic mystic John O’Donohue from his poem “For a New Beginning”:
Though your destination is not yet clear
You can trust the promise of this opening;
Unfurl yourself into the grace of beginning
That is at one with your life’s desire.
Awaken your spirit to adventure;
Hold nothing back, learn to find ease in risk;
Soon you will be home in a new rhythm,
For your soul senses the world that awaits you.
I hope this year can be one of unfurling, that you give time to your soul to sense the world, and be open to transformation. Know that the Chaplain’s office is here to help you navigate that growth, to listen and reflect, and to always offer ice cream or a cup of tea.