By Cheyenne Schoen |
The energy I felt on The Bluff during Junior Parent’s Weekend was one that brought back memories of that sticky-hot move-in day freshman year. But unlike that frantic mess of emotions I felt three years ago (has it really been that long?), I wasn’t nervous this time. I wasn’t scared. I wasn’t questioning whether or not this Portland thing was going to work out. That’s because hindsight told me it had worked out, and that I’d picked the perfect place to spend my undergraduate years. I could easily name a hundred reasons why this is true, but I think the root of the reasons can be summed up in one word: caring. I think about life at a larger state school and how great it might be to rush a sorority, tailgate a huge football game and have my pick of 12 food courts. But I can guarantee that they aren’t personally greeted by the administration who knows them by name. And I’m willing to bet that they don’t get to eat lunch or have a beer with their professors and pastoral residents. I know I picked the right college to call home because there are so many people who genuinely care about students here. I feel supported by every person I have ever met on campus: the housekeepers in the dorms, Public Safety officers, Bon Appetit employees, librarians, nurses, advisers, the woman who cooked meals for me in the Salzburg center. I could go on. This weekend was magical. Most of all, though, it made me realize that juniors have a year left here, and that’s entirely too short. Thank you to everyone who made JPW possible, and to everyone who cares, because you all make The Bluff a wonderful place to call home. Cheyenne is a reporter at The Beacon. She can be reached at schoen17@up.edu.
