Auburn Reflections – Part 1

1993 — My junior year of high school.  I was section leader of the sideline percussion section and wanting to major in architecture in college.  I also never fully felt at home in Florida, so I wanted to leave the state. Using these criteria among others, my mom and I researched colleges throughout the country and narrowed the possibilities down to four.  One of those was Penn State, which we were plenty familiar with, so we decided to take a Road Trip to the other three.

So, my mom and I piled up in our silly little Renault sedan for a road trip to three very different places.  The first stop was Blacksburg, Virginia — VTech.  We were still on the road leading to town when I knew this was not the place for me.  Our entire visit screamed of a personality that was foreign to me.  It was quite easy to move on. 

The second stop was ol’ Rocky Top, Knoxville, Tennessee.  This visit was quite different from the first.  I was practically offered a special scholarship on-the-spot.  The facilities were excellent.  The campus was beautifully positioned within the urban fabric.  There was definitely a lot of positive things that UT had to offer, but we moved on.

The third stop was The Loveliest Village on the Plains, Auburn, Alabama.  As we came down I-85 and got off at exit 51, God spoke.  As I drove up College Street, then with giant tiger prints paving the way to campus, I knew I was home.  I don’t think anyone could have changed my mind at the time.  Everything about the visit instilled in me a deep navy and orange blood that will never be removed.

Several things in my life have changed since that first visit.  College Street and the rest of Auburn have also changed considerably.  God has totally shaken up the original interests that brought me here, but He used them to get me to where He wanted me to be — and has been changing and shaping me ever since.  Despite living in Pennsylvania and Florida as a child, Auburn is the place I have called “home” for just shy of 15 years.  Everything else was “just visiting” or “back home.”