On Saturday, May 11, 2013, I graduated with a Bachelor of
Science degree in biological science from Butler University. On graduation day,
I said goodbye to the university that had come to not only feel like home, but was
home. I said goodbye to the halls of Hinkle Fieldhouse, where I had played
countless games as a member of the basketball band. I said goodbye to the
Butler Bowl, where I had marched for the final time as a member of the marching
band. I said goodbye to Fairbanks, where I had spent hours over the years
practicing for that next speech or debate tournament. I said goodbye to Jordan
Hall, where I had taken classes from philosophy to education. I said goodbye to
Lilly Hall, where band rehearsals, Kappa Kappa Psi rituals, and hangouts with
friends had happened. I said goodbye to Gallahue Hall, the place where I first
fell in love with science (most especially biology) and eventually completed
the education to become a biologist. I said goodbye to the Pharmacy and Health
Sciences Building, where I started to learn what being a public health
professional could entail. I said goodbye to the carillon, the pond, the
Holcomb Gardens, the mall, Star Fountain, and everything else that makes
Butler’s campus what it is.
Saying goodbye to the place that is Butler University was
hard, but saying goodbye to the people I have met is even harder than that. There
are the professors who, regardless of department, helped me to realize not only
who I am, but who I want to be and how to get there. Most especially, my
mentor, Dr. Ryder, who has given me all the tools I need to succeed in whatever
I do, wherever it is. There are the brothers of the Alpha Beta chapter of Kappa
Kappa Psi, who pushed me to be a better person and musician than I was before.
AEA, brothers. There are my friends in the sciences that helped me to survive
many a boring lecture or lab (Zach Jones and Adam Davis, I’m thinking of
physics!). Beyond those amazing people, there are my best friends that I found
through fate and kept through love. Ryan Pscheid, Jacob Wade, and Kelli
McCubbins were the best friends I could have asked for, and I can’t even
imagine where I would be without them.
With my college experience at Butler already visible in the rear view mirror, the time is approaching when I must say goodbye to Bloomington
and all the memories it holds. Friends from high school that stuck with me
through college (Rita Cripe, TJ Root, Eric Billingham, Kyle Bristol, and many
others) will hopefully continue to stick with me in the future. My other half
and best friend of almost 19 years, Brian Inlow, has helped me to become who I
am today, and I know that us being apart is part of growing as individuals and
building a lifelong friendship. Although leaving friends is hard, leaving my
family is yet harder. My parents have provided guidance and support to me my
whole life, and this is the farthest I will ever have been from them and the longest
that we will be apart at this point in our lives. Cameron and Connor and I have
always been a little trio of trouble, and I will miss our nights playing games,
talking, and eating all the food in the house.
That final goodbye will come in just three weeks. 21 days
from today on June 25th I will board a plane that departs at 6:59am
for staging in Philadelphia. At 3:00am the next day, a bus of all the Peace
Corps Swaziland Invitees will depart our hotel in Philly for New York, where our
flight to Johannesburg, South Africa will depart at 11:15am. After one very
long flight, we will land and depart by another plane for Manzini, Swaziland
and arrive around lunchtime on June 27th.
It’s crazy to think how quickly this journey is approaching.
I hope that in the next 21 days I build some basic SiSwati language skills,
knowledge of HIV, ideas about HIV/AIDS health education, general understanding
of the Swazi culture, and great memories from here at home. I know that I am
leaving to start saving the world (one country at a time!), and that excites
me, but I’m also a little scared. We’ll take these last few weeks one day at a
time and savor every moment.
I know this post is long. I'm sorry. I may or may not ever learn the art of brevity.
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