On Dec. 7, Professor Libbey’s Eat, Pray, Love section of the first-year seminar set up, Eat, Pray, Love The Experience, took place on the first floor of the Center for Academic Success (CAS) building. This event was inspired by the book, Eat, Pray, Love, a memoir by Elizabeth Gilbert about her journey to self-discovery. The mission of this event was to create an immersive experience for those who had not read the book and inspire them to go on their own journey of self-discovery. 

Professor Libbey, Lecturer in the School of General Studies explained the goal of teaching Eat, Pray, Love, “Elizabeth Gilbert in her memoir travels around the world in search of herself. My students are freshmen and this is a transitional time for them. I thought if they could read someone else’s story about identity, change and discovery that they could relate and find an understanding within themselves. We also focused on taking the skills and lessons Gilbert learned and applied it to situations in their own lives.”

At the event students had the opportunity to donate $1.00 or $1.75 for items from the bake sale, made fresh by the seminar class students. All of the donations provided at the event went to a charity of the classes choosing. The class decided on The Lotus House, a women’s shelter that aids homeless women and families. 

The treats provided by the bake sale included: 

• Fruity pebble rice krispies 

• Cupcakes

• M&M cookies 

• Peppermint bark in a bag 

• Brownies 

• Chocolate chip cookies 

• Chocolate covered pretzels 

“Overall $175 dollars was donated. Each student gave $7 to the planning committee who created a budget of $140 to plan the entire event. So really the students donated themselves to create a positive experience for Kean students along with the charity they chose. I think overall my students expressed the kindness and selflessness we hope to see this time of year”, Professor Libbey said. 

Those who attended the event were also able to create a goodie bag and/or write a card to someone anonymously, along with being encouraged to take one for themselves before leaving. The items provided to make the goodie bags were regular and vastly flavored candy canes and hershey kisses. The cards provided were heart shaped and students could write whatever message of love they wanted and could sign their name or leave it anonymous. 

The biggest take away from this event was the bracelet making station. Here, students could create their own bead bracelet, syncing up the color of the beads they chose with the corresponding colors to match their aura’s. Students were encouraged to use the letter beads to write their names or anything they wanted on their bracelets. 

The entire event was pouring with love and positivity. Everyone could feel the joy emanating from the class and those who attended. Processor Libbey and her students had an amazing turnout, not only from Kean students but from Kean professors who came to support their colleague and this amazing event. 

Thank you for the wonderful experience, Professor Libbey and Class!