It Took a Hurricane (part 1)

This is going to be a series of posts for a couple of reasons. First, I will never be able to put all my thoughts or memories for this certain topic in one, coherent post. Second, I feel each of these parts deserves their own post. On Friday, I got word that my college was closing its doors. I was honestly very surprised by the amount of sadness that I felt over the school closing. I drove over to the school that very afternoon to get one last look at a place I loved so very much. There was a palpable sense of something coming to an end, and yet there was still such a sense of pride knowing that I got to be one of the privileged group who got to call this place home. I cried as I left the campus because I felt a little sorry for all the people who will never get to know that feeling of coming home to Clearwater. I stopped and took a picture of two (one of the notorious "white benches" where the love struck would sit and would be mocked by all... until I became love struck and occupied one of those very benches with my now husband). I got a picture of my residence hall and the café where I worked for two years. I took my little guy out and walked him around the campus for a little while. It felt good to see it again. But still, I felt sad. I suppose part of it is the fact that three of the happiest years of my life were spent there. I met my husband of 7 years there. I met some of the greatest friends in the world there (whom I still keep in contact with and love very dearly). Even after I graduated, the school was still very much a part of me. Any time I drove across the Causeway from a visit to Tampa, there was the little green sign informing the world that it was not just a bunch of mangroves and trees on the other side of Damascus Drive, it was a whole little world back there. For such a long time, every t-shirt I owned had a cougar on it and was black, white or maroon. When God took our sweet baby Hannah home to heaven, my former Psychology Professor met with me for counseling that I desperately needed and helped me take huge strides in the grieving process. Most of all, Clearwater was a family... and still is. The posts in future days are going to detail the journey God took me on to 1. Get me to Clearwater and 2. The wonderful memories and experiences He allowed me to have there. In future days, the title of these posts will also become clear. Gotta leave some mystery out there to keep you reading. To speak to the close of the school, there is so much I want to say and I think that writing is a great way to help you grieve. It helps you put those thoughts that have been swirling around into something that you can wrap your mind around and put to rest. I am sad that Clearwater is closing. But Clearwater is so much more than the buildings. Clearwater is the people. It is the professors that were willing to, in a very real way, pour their lives and time and energy into students who sometimes did not realize how much sacrifice that took until they were long gone from the campus. It is the Founder who took vision and made it a reality. It is the leaders who worked behind the scenes to keep the school working, from those in the guard shack to those who swept and mopped. God's work at Clearwater does not end with the close of the school. The vision of Clearwater goes on in each of us who have moved on to the next place God has taken us. When we live lives of testimony and reflect our Savior to this very lost and dark world, THAT is Clearwater. When we carry the Gospel to those who haven't heard, THAT is Clearwater. When we love others as Christ first loved us, THAT is Clearwater. That's what will continue on, long after the campus would have. It matters not why the school closed or when its last days will be. It is insensitive and not necessary to speculate why or put blame on anyone. The closing of CCC did not catch our Heavenly Father by surprise. "For such a time as this" rings in my heart these past few days. God had Clearwater exist for 49 long years to equip students to serve HIM better and it accomplished that for sure. There are CCC grads all over the place doing KINGDOM work! Arguing over why it closed and fuming over it makes no difference. During my days at the school the motto was, "Impact eternity"-- in fact I have a coffee mug, a commencement program and a diploma all stamped with that very concept. That is what matters about Clearwater now... Impact eternity. We can do that by praying for the students who will need to trust the Lord to take them to their next location. We must pray for those wonderful teachers and staff members who are leaning on HIS everlasting arms in a VERY real way in the days and months ahead. We can have impact by doing what we were trained to do at Clearwater. If we are teachers, lets teach with all our might for the Glory of God. If we are engineers, or businessmen or electricians... lets be truth to those who have no idea what that is anymore. If we are homemakers, lets raise the next generation to know right from wrong and stand on God's promises. If we are pastors, let's proclaim the Gospel like never before. THAT'S having impact. 

 See you in the next post XOXO --AMY