Let me take a break from the five thousand things I have to do before Friday to be distracted by the place I’m in right now. I mean that quite literally as well as figuratively, because right now I’m at Loyola’s Information Commons. It’s kind of like a library, except… digital. It is three floors of computers and is placed conveniently along the shore of Lake Michigan. I come here when all other attempts to sit down and be productive have failed. It’s the last chance and only hope of getting things done. The third floor is the silent floor, and right now I hear no voices. The sound I do hear? The waves of Lake Michigan. It has some sort of solar panel openings that are propped at certain times of the day (see photo) and right now must be that time. It’s like a mixture of being at the beach and being in an office. I suppose it’s more like being in an office with a sound machine on…except the sound is REAL. 100% Natural.

As I am overwhelmed by the literal place where I am right now, so I am with the place in my life right now, specifically the one of leaving Loyola. I know this comes as no surprise to my older sister who shares the alma mater or my father who constantly hear us promote it, but I know I will graduate from this school with a deep appreciation for the part it has played in my life. I didn’t know what to expect from it when I entered in the fall of 2006. My limited knowledge was whatever I perceived from my sister’s life here and the biased brochures I received in the mail once I was accepted. But it has come to mean so much to me in the course of four years. It’s what drew me to this city and it has impacted my friendships, my relationships, my spirituality, my worldview, my passions, my contacts, my intellect, and certainly my future.

I remember when a good friend graduated last May from another university and I asked him “So, are you so excited?!” His reply that has remained very distinct in my memory was “To be honest, not really. You spend four years building into a community and you’re supposed to be excited to leave it? Truthfully I’m kinda sad.”

Staring at my final four days of student teaching, my last few papers, and my last memorable weeks with my roommates, his answer to my question resonates in my mind. Because even though I am thrilled to be a college graduate moving on with my life, I am sad to physically leave an institution that holds such a firm place in my heart. L-O-Y! O-L-A! GO LOYOLA ALL THE WAY!