settled

5 years ago we were planning what life would be like in college. We had worn our matching lilly around the may pole, we had our lace dress made, and our flower wreath for our hair ordered. We predicted how we would be in college. We happily dreamed about how we would spend our lazy afternoons catching up on daytime television. We were sad to leave each other but dying to get to where we were going. We could have never predicted our lives in college. They were far too whimsical to be preplanned. But we left our bubble that May never even anticipating what was in store

4 years ago at this time we were packing up boxes in martin and catching those terrible elevators for the last couple of times. We came with perfectly polished outfits for fall football games, matching bedding, shower caddies, ten pairs of nike shorts, and small t shirts. We left with extra large t-shirts, jean cut offs made for spring parties, too many white hanes vnecks (that were only purchased when we were to lazy to do laundry, which meant at least once a month), canvases boasting cardinal and straw, an extra ten pounds that can only be attributed to the c-store, and new sense of independence. However we were more dependent on one another than we had ever been. We were no longer the babies of college. We discussed trivial matters like furniture for our apartments, who would get what room, and what canvases we would hang in the den. We discussed how we could ever spend a summer apart. We said goodbye to the towers one last time and pulled out of the dorm parking lot never knowing how much we would miss it

3 years ago at this time we were attempting to clean out the creek. I never could have imagined how much stuff I can accumulate in one year. It was like the stuff we brought just multiplied. The excitement of our first apartment had been overshadowed by disposals that shot the food back into the sink, a garbage bin two miles down the road, and a parking lot that did not contain enough spots for its residents. We packed up our boxes to head to south 16th. This is where juniors lived. We now would be moving into a house. When we left this may we knew that having a summer apart wouldn't change a thing. Some people would be spending the summer in oxford. Others spent their summers away. It didn't matter where we spent the summer. what mattered is that august came and we were all back together

 2 years ago at this time we were packing up the yellow box. Things were beginning to be different. People's summer plans were becoming more grown up. Internships and jobs that may lead to careers. Some of us stayed in oxford preparing for test for grad school. The future could no longer be ignored. We would only have one more year here. We sorted through our stuff carefully knowing that only our favorite possessions would fit into our room at the house. Some of us had been living together for a while now and we finally had to divide up the plates and bowls and pans. But not everything. We had one more year to share closets, stories, and lives in the same place. A lot changed that year. We grew up. We turned 21, we all declared majors, and we packed up the yellow box and all knew well how much we would miss it

1 year ago at this time we were pulling out the caps and gowns again and finally dividing up all our stuff. We had to deal with separating tshirts, jeans, and everything else that had become intertwined. We left some stuff behind coming to the realization that extra large red and yellow tshirts may have been uniform in oxford but not in life outside of it. We knew the plans that we all had for life after college but no one was ready to take those steps. We spent every moment together thinking that this would some how prevent may from ever coming. But May comes no matter what. And saying goodbye was inevitable

May 2011 its been a year since we divided up. People got jobs, husbands, responsibilities, fiancees, house payments, masters degrees, acceptance letters, and new lives. But we never stopped being intertwined. We learned that our friendships were not held together by physical proximity. If that were the case I would be quite lonely. We have learned the thrill of a future career that you love, how hard it is to get dressed when you only have your closet, and how much an email, text, or note from a friend can brighten your day. This is the first may in 5 years that I am not packing up any boxes. I am not planning new bedding or signing a new lease. For the first time I am settled. It may be in a place that I dont plan on calling home for too long. For today it is home and its nice to take a break from all packing and unpacking. Its strange being here in may which is always a time I spend at home celebrating mothers day and my birthday. But this year is different and I am learning to be okay with that. 


Good luck to those packing this may. Where ever you are going next i hope its everything you hoped for and more. And remember oxford has no replacement but thats okay. It always gets to be special.
Until Then,
Amy