As the exam season approaches, I am beginning to see fewer regular students in the chaplaincy common room on Guy’s Campus. Those who do pop in have one thing in common – they’re looking for a change of scene after spending hours in the college library. Chaplaincy may describe itself in many ways, but perhaps ‘a welcome change of scene’ is a good place to start. We’re lucky enough to have comfy common rooms on all five of the college campuses, and we hope students will use these spaces to make new friends, to have good conversations, or just to accept the invitation to switch off from the pressures of uni life. It’s important that we make time for those things that encourage us to slow down and enjoy the small things in life.  

That could mean heading to your nearest chaplaincy common room and making yourself a cup of tea. I find that the simple ritual of filling a kettle, waiting for it to boil, selecting your preferred tea (and we have plenty to choose from), finding your favourite mug, pouring the freshly boiled water over the tea bag. All these steps can help you detach from the rigours of life for a few precious moments. Even listening mindfully to the incremental rumbling of a boiling kettle can help us let go of those things which we too readily consider as crucial to our very existence.  

I’m not trying to suggest that your studies are trivial, but the very opposite. For you to truly thrive in any given subject you must cherish who you are and what makes you tick. When we lose a sense of who we are our mental health can begin to dip and we are less likely to connect with our studies on a deep level.  

This brings me back to our chaplaincy common rooms. They’re comfy, cosy, safe spaces where you can help yourself to tea and coffee almost any time of the week. Most of our common rooms have a microwave and a coffee machine if tea is not your thing. If you can track down one of our fabulous Chaplaincy Assistants, they will happily show you how to get your head around our espresso machines.  

And if this has failed to persuade you to pay us a visit, Friday 19th April is National Tea Day. To mark this important festival we’re hosting two fabulously free Afternoon Tea events – one at Guy’s and one at Strand. Despite being National Tea Day we will also be serving coffee and cake, so the caffeine addicts among you need not panic. The Guy’s event will be on the 19th April 2-4pm in G2, Henriette Raphael House. The Strand event will be on 26th April 2-4pm in 2.34 in King’s Building. Just turn up on the day, no need to sign up. If you can’t make either worry not – remember that you can grab a humble cuppa in our common rooms anytime during the week. Tea-rific! 

For more info on how to find your nearest Chaplaincy common room, see https://www.kcl.ac.uk/chaplaincy/chapels-chaplaincies/chaplaincies, or contact us at [email protected].