“I can’t talk much about it,” I remember my friend Helen Humphrey* telling me on her first week back from Kairos. It was almost as if she was deliberately trying to be mysterious. I waited for her to say something more, but nothing came.

I wanted to learn about Kairos, possibly hear some of the inside knowledge and the stuff you aren’t supposed to know about.

For those who don’t know what Kairos is, it’s not the city in Egypt. As described in its pamphlet, “Kairos is the name given to a retreat during which high school seniors and juniors spend time reflecting, in a structured way, about the directions their lives are taking.”

Sponsored by OLPH, Kairos has Christian elements to it, though you don’t have to be Christian to go on the retreat.

Humphrey introduced me to the  positive side of Kairos and described how it opened her mind to the problems and situations others are dealing with.

“Kairos is just an awakening as to how real people are, and how some of the worst times in your life didn’t have to be so bad, if you were aware of the support system you have in your own school community,” Humphrey stated.

My desire to go on Kairos, however, apparently wasn’t acceptable with some of my friends. Some would tell me that it’s a cult, and others would assert that bonds don’t last, and that within a few weeks back from Kairos everyone returns to their old friend groups with secrets exposed to people who they no longer talk to.

Senior Nicholas Holzkopf, who feels like he has been pressured by some of his peers to do Kairos, personally does not feel like the program is right for him.

“I get that relationships can be built instantly, but I don’t think they can be built in a weekend or two weekends because you’re telling them your life story,” Holzkopf said.

In an Oracle-conducted survey of 159 upperclassmen, 77 percent said they have heard of Kairos, 55 percent said that they have a general idea of what Kairos is about, but only 44 percent say that they would consider going on it. My desire to go on Kairos apparently was not with the popular belief.

The summer following my junior year came, and I was still planning to do Kairos sometime during my senior year. With the second week of my summer came Habitat for Humanity, a program that I signed up for that took place in Lexington, K Y and involved a group of about 30 kids and four chaperones that would help build homes for low-income families.

The program was a week long, and in this environment I grew to feel very comfortable with the people I was living with.

Everyone simply became friends. It was more than I could have comprehended at the time.With this friendly and socially relaxed environment, I noticed how the people around me were very willing to open up. Though we weren’t all best friends, we would in the least support and accept each other regardless of what we shared.

Though Habitat for Humanity is not at all the same thing as Kairos, the experience has made me realize that it is human nature to want to bond and confide in others when the environment is appropriate.

This environment, however, is difficult to find and I don’t think it can be found when people are surrounded by the everyday stress of school and pressure to cling to the cliques that make us feel comfortable. Often, an organized retreat such as Kairos is ideal and can bring a sort of rare outlet.

However, the idea of confiding in people that you don’t know well can evoke something special and exciting. It is like starting with a blank slate or having a fresh start.

It’s a chance to shape your own honest image and build relationships beginning on real and emotional levels.

Kairos will continue to be a controversial event for different reasons. Whether or not these reasons are valid, they will continue to exist surrounding such a secretive and unique event.

Maybe some people don’t think it is a good idea. And maybe some people just don’t need Kairos. But, for a lot of people, their experience at Kairos has meant the world to them. We don’t all have to agree. But we can all respect it.

*Names are altered to protect student’s identity