Beatriz Araujo, originally from Brazil, came to LCC International University as a Study Abroad student and eventually decided to transfer here as a full time student. This Spring, Beatriz graduated from LCC with a degree in International Business Administration. Over the time spent here, Beatriz learnt the beauty of diverse cultures, what it means to be tolerant, and how various challenges impact one’s growth.

Faith – is really what convinced me to stay here. My relationship with God is very strong. When I first came to LCC as a Study Abroad for a semester, I felt God calling me to come back here and it was a lot of discourse. I did not want to leave all my family and friends back in the U.S., but because my faith is strong and I chose to listen to what God was telling me I decided to stay. I then went to Miesto Bažnyčia where someone was preaching. He/she was telling the exact message that you have to sometimes leave things behind, so that God can work in your life.

Culture - here at LCC this idea of culture is expanded because you really are interacting with cultures that are completely different from one another. There are similarities in some cultures, but they all have their unique touch, and it is a very beautiful thing. I also think that this experience of dealing with people from different backgrounds enriches your life experience as well. You gain knowledge in how to interact and how to respect other cultures. Even in our context there have been disagreements between country to country, but when we come together in our university culture we are still a family, we are still accepting and loving and welcoming of each other.

Tolerance – is not about agreeing, but it is about welcoming what you disagree with, learning from it, and embracing it. Tolerance is extremely important when we see many people from different backgrounds. You can disagree with what the best food is but you can still welcome their opinion and say “Ok, yes, hachapuri is the best food ever or cepelinai is the best food ever”. I might disagree with that because I have my bias about Brazilian food, but I can still accept that they love those meals. This is a very simple, maybe childish example, but this is what tolerance is in my understanding.

Development – is a lifelong thing and it is never over. No matter where we are at, there will always be something to improve on. It is about understanding that there is always room for development. When I realized that I have so much growing and maturing to do I think that allowed me to take steps further towards my personal development.

Challenges – they always exist in our lives no matter whether they are big or small. I think life is not life if everything is always perfect. Even if you have the perfect life of traveling and doing anything you want, you always face challenges like going to the hotel and your room was given away to someone else. We will always have challenges, but it is about how we overcome them that defines us and this is something that I feel people should focus more.