Authentic Orange

Submitted by Megan Marchand

Authenticity to me means not being fake, but being true to one self as well as others when it comes actions upon one’s morals and beliefs.

Now, I haven’t always been a Beaver Believer. In fact, up until my senior year of high school, I was always a Duck fan. It wasn’t until I received a scholarship that would pay for my tuition at any university in the state of Oregon that found myself considering becoming a Beaver. Ever since I was a little kid I always wanted to become a high school teacher, I wanted to teach Agriculture to younger generations and education them on some of the most important subjects that pertain to continuing life on this earth. I just never knew how. It wasn’t until I was awarded the Ford Family Foundation scholarship that this dream of mine was put into perspective.

All of a sudden the stats, sports or games didn’t matter. I focused on the academics of schools all around Oregon and I found that Oregon State was known for its College of Agriculture as well as excelled academically in the eyes of the state. That’s when I applied and a few months later I was accepted. I started attending OSU in the Fall of 2013 and grew to love the community as well as the beautiful campus. Everyone here is so welcoming and accepting they became people too difficult to not like. They grew on me.

Today, I would consider myself authentically Orange. There is not school I rather attend or place I rather be than with my fellow classmates and peers here at this university. We may not be super great at football, but we have great sportsmanship.

This is a guide to becoming AUTHENTICALLY Orange for all those CURRENT Duck fans!

• Visit and fall in love with our campus!
• It’s not too big, but it’s not too small either
• See how welcoming, open minded and accepting our community is
• Apply and enroll at Oregon State University. You can visit the Admission’s Office page at http://oregonstate.edu/admissions/ to get more information.
• Buy a bunch of Beaver gear
• Admire how good you look in orange and black! What’s up good lookin’?
• Take classes that you’re interested in and contact your professors
• Realize how much the instructors on this campus care about the success of each and every one of their students.
• Sit in the student’s section at any one of our sporting events and feel the energy of our fan base
• Play intermural sports through Dixon Rec
• Get involved in Greek Life whether you join the community or you just participate in their philanthropies
• Live fully and authentically and enjoy every moment at this beautiful school

Alright, so there are a few things I’ve learned from my Philosophy class this past term. One of the things I’ve learned is how to live in the moment. I’ve learned that reality is ontologically ambiguous and that facticity and transcendence both play an important part in living day-to-day. This class has taught me to question everything! I mean everything. Is freedom actually free? What does it mean to be alive? What does it take to become “nothing”? Is there an afterlife? Is there a god? Most importantly though, this past term I’ve learned the importance of being true to myself. The importance of authenticity. Without being authentic I can’t successfully live with meaning. We are all in an existential situation where we are striving for eternal and infinite meaning. There are three spheres to existence: Aesthetic, Ethical and Religious.

People live that live in the Aesthetic sphere are thrill seekers. They seek to satisfy their desires immediately. In the Ethical sphere people constantly debate if situations and choices are good or bad. These people live with believing they have a universal moral duty to make responsible decisions that align with their idea of right. Lastly, in the Religious sphere these people live in Christian faith. They find meaning in both their church and their relationship with God.

Some people live in all three of these spheres actively. Some only one or two. However, typically one resonates most with them. Which do you live in?