Hilltop's Political Atmosphere Made an Unexpected Artist Out of Me

I often have been asked if I believe in fate or if I think life happens by chance. Georgetown has made me think life is a combination of both. If I had gone to any other school, I am sure I would have learned the lessons I have learned at Georgetown sooner or later, but I think being at Georgetown from August 2004 until May 2008 presented the exact experiences, people and education I am supposed to obtain; in some way, Georgetown was fate.

In April of my senior year of high school, I came to visit Georgetown during Hoya Saxa Weekend, a GAAP weekend hosted by the Center for Multicultural Equity and Access. Before coming to the prospective weekend, Georgetown was not my top choice, and I was set on attending Brown University. Perhaps it was the beautiful weather, playing volleyball on Copley lawn or my tour of M Street that allured me. Whatever “it” may have been, I decided that I wanted to go to Georgetown; it was a gut feeling I had and one of the biggest decisions I have made in my 22 years on earth. It was a decision, a difficult one, that has forced me to follow my passion and listen to my voice. Because of it, I have come closer to the often daunting yet rewarding task of being in touch with your truth.

As a black female from small-town Rome, Ga., I had no idea that the random Allen Iverson search I made in the computer lab of Darlington School during my senior year would lead me to Georgetown University’s Web site. I landed on more than a Web site; I came across an opportunity, at the time, to pursue my dream to become a renowned politician. Then, I knew I wanted to pursue a career in politics, and during that search, I found Georgetown to be ideal, a place where politics thrived. Interestingly, I have never interned on the Hill, but what I gained instead has been amazing.

While at Georgetown, I have developed my passion for art. Little did I know that the school I attended to broaden my knowledge of politics would create a canvas on which I could be creative and explore my creative passion. The art classes I have taken, the digital media I have utilized, and the talented students I have connected with have all allowed me to use art as a social agent, sometimes catalyst, for change. Since I have been at Georgetown, I have used video, mural painting and photography, in addition to producing performance art, to communicate the injustices and peculiarities found within our human community. The mural I painted with Jasmine Carsky (COL ’07) in the Black House still remains as a message of community, and it brightens the house. I was able to continue my passion for mural arts in the Dominican Republic through fundraising efforts and grants supported almost entirely by Georgetown programs, friends and professors. Such unending support allowed me to share my knowledge of the often-underappreciated arts with the world. I know that without the tools that are available on Georgetown’s campus, I would not have a mural in San Cristobal, Dominican Republic, or have met the professors and friends that encouraged me to explore the Afro-Latino Caribbean community I hope to reside in post-graduation.

I like to think of this point in our lives, our graduation from Georgetown, as an opportunity to be in three places at once. Many of us are reflecting on our past and on the time we have spent at Georgetown living our lives. We are also thinking about the present and have an understanding of who we presently are. Our gowns are on as we attend convocation, senior ball is in the present and fun, and graduation is in the forefront of our minds. We are graduates. Yet then we are one other place: the future. We must be asking ourselves, “I know where I have been, where I am now, but where am I going?” Despite a job on Wall Street, a plan to attend graduate school or a desire to be “men and women for others” through service, we do not know exactly what the future holds. As students and human beings, we find ourselves in these three places — the past, the present and the projected future. It is a beautiful place to be, and one thing is for sure: We are all Georgetown. We will continue to learn, to live and to understand we who we are.

Xaivier Ringer is a senior in the College and co-chair of Hoya Saxa Weekend.