Embracing Mess, Creating Beauty
Megan Veurink ('20) started her freshman year at Dordt University with a plan to pursue a pre-physical therapy degree. But those plans soon changed.
"That major allowed me to care for those around me, but it did not allow me to use several of my gifts and abilities,” says Veurink.
Veurink took several psychology courses that piqued her interest. “I enjoyed many of the psychology courses I had taken during my freshman year, so I continued to look in that broadened field,” Veurink says. “This is when I discovered art therapy, a dream career I didn’t know existed!”
She switched her majors the next semester. At Dordt, Veurink was challenged in classes such as statistics, senior research and cognitive psychology. Even though the courses were difficult, “the professors and their genuine desire to help their students and their use of humor made me feel seen and vastly prepared me for graduate school,” says Veurink.
Being challenged is just half of what makes for exceptional academics; students also need to have an opportunity to practice their skills. Veurink says that’s why she enjoyed a course at Dordt called Helping Skills.
“This was one of the first classes where I got a small taste of what it was like putting counseling skills in action. We learned about theories, techniques, and development in psychology, but we did not always put what we learned into action.”
Having coursework that allows students the opportunity to practice their skills is crucial. Veurink says it was exciting to get a glimpse at “what it might look like to use my gifts and be the helping hands and feet of Jesus.”
Art courses were not just about refining Veurink’s artistic ability; they were a refuge amid her robust schedule of classes and soccer. “These art classes allowed me to slow down and find moments of peace in what felt like an always busy and ongoing unfulfilled checklist,” says Veurink. “For a couple hours of my day, the noise felt a little less loud, and my hands served as tools to embrace mess while making beauty.”
Attending Dordt was always part of Veurink’s plan, but it wasn’t until she arrived at Dordt that she realized just how formative her time on campus would be.
“My faith journey had been stagnant in a sense until I came to college,” says Veurink. Even though she grew up in a Christian home, was a member of a church, and attended a Christian school, Veurink’s faith was “everything that someone else believed that I took for my own.”
At Dordt, Veurink started making intentional choices about her relationship with Christ. “College taught me to have faith for my very own,” says Veurink. “Dordt gave me an opportunity to learn what a personal relationship with God is. I learned to build my relationship with Him through conversational prayer, and I grew a lot by attending worship nights, chapels, doing devotions, and attending church on Sundays.”
This commitment has continued since Veurink graduated. In graduate school, Veurink felt a sense of grounding that she says some of her peers seemed to struggle with. “Feeling confident in my faith as well as my educational experience from Dordt set me apart from my peers and only deepened my relationship with Christ,” says Veurink.
While her roots gave her confidence in her faith, seeing others living apart from Christ was challenging for Veurink. “Graduate school highlighted how truly broken and distant many are from God,” says Veurink. “While my experience affirmed my faith it also created a sadness in my heart. The sadness gives me a sense of calling and purpose in my field of work, knowing I can make a difference.”
Now, Veurink works as an art therapist at Alliance Clinical Associates in Wheaton, Illinois. Veurink says she cherishes her workplace. “It is a practice filled with therapists, psychologists and psychiatrists who share a love for Jesus,” she says. “It's unique in that there are not many practices out there like this.”
Veurink works with people of all ages with diagnoses such as “anxiety, depression, ADHD, trauma, and adjustment disorders.” In her role, Veurink utilizes her skills as a counselor and her artistic gifts to build genuine relationships with her patients. Through art, Veurink hopes to give her patients the same sense of belonging and purpose that she has. “Art is not merely meant to be hung on walls. Art is reflective, therapeutic, hopeful, and meaningful,” says Veurink.
Working for a clinic with fellow believers has been a tremendous blessing in both her personal and professional life. “This community has encouraged me in my faith, supported me pre and postpartum, and has challenged me to be a better clinician all while relying on the strength of God,” says Veurink.
