Everything I’ll miss as a senior at Auburn

As a graduating senior with less than six weeks until graduation, I’m finding myself “ready” to leave Auburn. I put ready in quotes because I do yearn for a larger city, but I’m going to leave little pieces of my heart in Auburn.

There’s a quote from David Housel, as printed in the Auburn Football Illustrated that captures the Auburn Spirit and Auburn Family perfectly: “It is a spirit. It is an attitude. It is a way of looking at life and at one another. It is, almost, a way of living. Unless you have experienced it, you will never know what it is; you will never understand it. Once you have experienced it, you will never be the same. A part of you will, forevermore, be an Auburn man or an Auburn woman.”

I’ll miss the tightest squeezing of humans as we move through the entrance tunnels in Jordan-Hare, the way my hair stands up during Nova/Spirit’s flight, the hype video, the Band jog-out, the Auburn spell out and every single Bodda Getta in the student section.

I’ll even miss the little time lag it takes from the student side to the alumni side when we cheer “Auburn” or “Tigers.” Ugh, part of me wants to fail a class just so I can get another football season. War Eagle to that?

I’ll miss being able to say hey to random strangers and get a hey back, regardless of if it’s actually Hey Day. I’ll miss piling in sedans to get to downtown or TigerTown or everywhere in between, singing at the top of our lungs to old Britney Spears lyrics that are somehow still in our heads.

I’ll miss the brunch at Wellness Kitchen – OK, and its lunch and dinner. I’ll miss our $78 million Rec & Wellness Center, especially the StairClimber that overlooks the sparkling pool and my beloved tiger paw-shaped hot tub.

I’ll miss walking past my freshman dorm and thinking about how I spent some of my toughest, most homesick moments there, but grew more than I could have ever imagined. Every time I get a chance, I walk through the Upper Quad and reminisce.

I’ll miss the vast majority of my sorority sisters. I’ll miss participating in ritual every week and our always fun socials, semi-formals and formals. I’ll probably not miss trying to find a date for those, to be honest. I’ll miss our sisterhood events, from rollerblading to laser tag to movie nights to attempting to craft nights. I’ll miss the excitement on Bid Day, welcoming our new sisters home and the burst of emotion at Initiation. I’m already anticipating crying at my alumna ceremony.

I’ll miss the blooms every spring when the Plains burst with beautiful flowers. I’ll miss callouts on Cater Lawn. I’ll miss dressing up for involvement interviews and the anticipation when the lists are posted or names are called. I’ll even miss walking the concourse. Shh, don’t tell the campaign staff that.

I’ll miss free events with decent food and cool entertainment. I’ll miss being able to walk downtown to shop in precious boutiques and I’ll miss the smell of Toomer’s Drugstore and the taste of their lemonade. I already miss the old Auburn Oaks, which I was lucky enough to roll a few times, but I’ll miss seeing the new Auburn Oaks grow stronger.

I’ll miss my Auburn family who are still in classes. I’ll miss the memories they make without me there. But that’s the thing about Auburn: there’s always going to be little pieces of my heart here, calling me to my home on the Plains.