Be Good. Be Orange.

Be Full of Purpose Be Orange

Submitted by Margo Botti

Each student at Oregon State University has different reasoning as to what it means to Be Orange. For me, being Orange means having a purpose. Not just having a purpose, but also being full of purpose. Each of the 27,925 students have a reason and a purpose for being at this University; whether they know it now or figure it out in the future, there is a purpose. Living with a purpose while attending one’s time at Oregon State requires engagement with what’s going on. Posted all around campus are “Be Orange Banners” symbolizing what it means to Be Orange. We each have different values and attitudes, which decipher the degree to what we see Orangeness as. When we come together as one community, the characteristics OSU values according to their Strategic Plan are: accountability, diversity, integrity, respect, and social responsibility. There is a purpose behind how students live those values out each day. There is a purpose we are here at Oregon State, in the community each of us are in, and behind the legacy we will leave. We all have a purpose, and I believe we should live our purpose out to the fullest of our ability and capacity.
There is a reason I, and all of the other students are here at Oregon State. We all got accepted. The term accepted goes along way. Sometimes we lose thought of what it means to be here at the University, myself included. An amazing division one University wanted each one of us- we were picked by a group of people because they wanted us and chose us. It is our responsibility to make ethically sound decisions while we are here and to be aware of the core values OSU stands for helps to create a healthy successful community of students. We are chosen to be here and have a purpose behind that choice. We are accepted here, as one community and one body of people. With the diversity among the students, there is something we all have in common; we all got in to the same University. There is something special about feeling wanted and accepted and I think we forget that when we feel lonely or rejected. There’s a purpose that we were chosen an accepted and that is not something to take lightly. Knowing that we are all chosen to be one community makes us Orange. At OSU we each live out a different purpose, but we are all apart of one community- the community of Orangeness. We live out Orangeness in the many reasons why each of us are here. Being Orange may look different for all of us, but there is a purpose behind the activities we engage in, the paths we take in college, and the communities we are attracted to. Looking at it from a counteractive viewpoint, some students may not want to be here, and do not see the opportunity and positive experiences available to them. But I would argue to step back and see the purpose that will come from it. I believe we are all here for a purpose. At Oregon State we are people with a purpose, and should desire to live that out to the full.
I have been so incredibly blessed by the community I have at Oregon State. To me, there is so much meaning and purpose in that. Community is something I value immensely. I always tell people that the most important elements to have in college are community and accountability. My community encourages me and builds me up in my life and in my faith, and I in return am able to be a blessing to them. I have seen the purpose in why I have the community I have here and I want that for every student. Being involved in a community gives the opportunity to be compassionate towards other around you, and also compassionate to oneself, because they are plugging in to an environment where they feel they belong and are loved. The friends we choose in college are the ones who share in the triumphs, and mourn through the trials. We have a purpose for the people whom we affect and influence in our communities, and those who affect and influence us at OSU. Other people may not say that community is something that they think of when faced with the concept of being Orange, but I can assume that it is a part of their life here at Oregon State.
After leaving OSU, we will all leave behind a legacy. We are here for a purpose, and will leave with a purpose. After college everyone goes in different directions, but one thing we all have in common is that we get the opportunity to leave a legacy. If there is a purpose for us being here, what we leave behind is purposeful. Being Orange is something one can identify with for a lifetime. Being part of the Orange community also involves leaving the physical state of the Orange community as a student. I want to leave behind a legacy that makes people feel blessed because they knew me; I want them to remember me for the positive impact I made in their life. We were here, and we were Orange, how do you want to make the years here purposeful? What will your legacy be?
After asking people around me what it means to be Orange, some of the answers I received were: “being a Beaver fan,” “being concerned for the campus,” “being present,” “welcomed,” “being a student here,” “diversity,” and “people who are always friendly.” We all define Orange with different ethical values and attitudes we have. I value living life with a purpose, not just in my four years at OSU, but in the years I have lived and continue to live. Because I have compassion for myself, I will take what I think it means to be Orange and lay it at the world’s feet. I’m living life full of purpose, being Orange is living full of purpose. We have a purpose whether we see it now or see it in a year. Find your purpose and leave your legacy.