"Tomorrow.” my grandfather said. “Don’t keep saying you’ll do it tomorrow because every time you say ‘tomorrow’, another day passes. And then, in the blink of an eye, you are seventy years old, you never did any of the things you said you would do ‘tomorrow’, and suddenly you are wishing for ‘yesterdays’!” It was this conversation with my grandfather that locked in my (rather hasty) decision to travel abroad, study Art History and the classics, and, ultimately, extend my college career by another semester.
The question, however, remained: where would I go? Suddenly, I daydreamed of roaming cobblestone streets, passing by towering cathedrals, catching a whiff of the finest pizza, and tasting mounds of delectable gelato. It has to be Italy. It must be Rome. What better place to study Art History and the classics? Rome is full of marvels and spectacles—it is full of wonders, I thought. And then the famous quote from G.K. Chesterton’s book Tremendous Trifles popped into my head: “The world will never starve for want of wonders; but only for want of wonder.” Indeed! I knew I would stumble upon wonder after wonder in Rome, and that’s when my brilliant study abroad advisor set me up with John Cabot University.
I raced back to my college dorm room, pulled out my laptop, and my fingers fumbled to type in the John Cabot University website as quickly as possible. Here, I filled my head with pictures of Rome and poured over the syllabi of Art History classes: Could this be real? Yes, very real and even surreal at times!
The classes I took at John Cabot University allowed me to be filled with the knowledge of the ages. Oftentimes the classes blended together and sang the same tune, especially two classes which continue to have a special place in my heart. Any time I am asked about my education in Rome, I quickly pull the names of Professor Brunella Antomarini and Professor Paul Tegmeyer. In Professor Antomarini’s Philosophy of Art and Beauty, we would learn how the concepts of art and beauty developed over time and changed with philosophy, culture, literacy, and religion. It’s fascinating how often such knowledge is particularly useful in conversation. At the same time, perhaps even on the same day, Professor Tegmeyer would lead us into a grand Roman Catholic Cathedral and would lecture on one piece of art for two to three hours straight—that man was a walking encyclopedia! I would automatically have a more in-depth understanding of the artwork as the semester progressed, not only because of Professor Tegmeyer but also because of the beautiful knowledge being poured into my head by Professor Antomarini.
The classes at John Cabot are phenomenal because they vary in style. I could enjoy sitting in a classroom with Professor Antomarini who would pick our minds for thoughts and create deep philosophical discussions, or I could be walking from one end of the city to the other in one class period because Rome itself was my classroom! For the first time, I could really feel my classics major come alive as I experienced the very place where the classical world developed and thrived! Chesterton finally made sense: I needed to seek the true wonders of the classical world myself, not sit in a college classroom with my nose in a book looking at pictures of them. And Rome is certainly not lacking for wonders—every time you turn a corner there is something new whether it be the Colosseum, the Pantheon, any cathedral (they are all amazing), or the best gelateria (you’ve never tasted gelato until you’ve tasted Giuffre).
What was lacking was my desire to actually go and see it for myself! I needed to stop saying “tomorrow” and experience the wonders of the world. Rome was the best place to do it, and I would not have experienced Rome to the fullest if it had not been for my on-site classes. The more I learned about Rome, the more I discovered I really knew nothing about it at all. There is a plethora of history hiding in every nook and cranny, but this made my semester studying abroad even more memorable. Even on my last day, I learned something new in the midst of my Roman routine. Rome became a part of me, and I would not be the person I am today without it.
Taylor Schmidt
Excelsior Springs, MO
Concordia University Wisconsin
Classical Studies Major and Classical Pedagogy Minor (Classical Education Program)
The classes at John Cabot are phenomenal because they vary in style. I could enjoy sitting in a classroom with Professor Antomarini who would pick our minds for thoughts and create deep philosophical discussions, or I could be walking from one end of the city to the other in one class period because Rome itself was my classroom! For the first time, I could really feel my classics major come alive as I experienced the very place where the classical world developed and thrived! Chesterton finally made sense: I needed to seek the true wonders of the classical world myself, not sit in a college classroom with my nose in a book looking at pictures of them. And Rome is certainly not lacking for wonders—every time you turn a corner there is something new whether it be the Colosseum, the Pantheon, any cathedral (they are all amazing), or the best gelateria (you’ve never tasted gelato until you’ve tasted Giuffre).