College bound in 1973...oh, my goodness...that really was a long time ago!
It hardly seems possible with all the students going off to college that it was 34 years ago this week that I was doing the same thing...where did all that time go so quickly? I was looking back at my journal from those days and realized that the 1973 calendar and the 2007 calendar match day for day...seems strange. 34 years ago tonight was my first weekend night at college...I went, of all places, to a bar with some of the girls from my floor...18 being the legal drinking age in Iowa at the time. I know, you are all shocked...so unlike me to go to a bar...I had something called a Singapore Sling...goodness even knows what that was...and we all had a nice time dancing with various college guys. Half-way through the evening, I met a boy who liked to talk more than dance, which was fine with me as he was very nice, had lovely blue eyes, a beautiful bob of blonde hair, was fun, and probably most important to me, was smart...so no more drinking and dancing...the talking was nicer, and that pretty much set the tone for my college days...I realized one did not need to drink a lot at a bar to have a good time on a weekend evening in college. It has stood me well and I never again spent a weekend night at a bar where people were drinking too much. Oh, what a lot of life has transpired through all these years. It's amazing to me to think how young we were (and how mature we thought we were at the time). I've watched these kids grow up over the years and now am watching them heading off to college...it doesn't seem possible that they are old enough to do so. I hope the girls meet that blue eyed blonde boy who liked to dance a little, chat mostly, and drink not much at all. Those girls will be lucky and focus on what is truly important through the years. I hope the boys are those who like to dance a little, chat mostly, and drink not much at all. Most of all, I wish I could protect them from all of life's little ups and downs...but that isn't the way it works...some things one just needs to experience for oneself. It's fun looking back, but it is also nice being right here right now. Best wishes, all my college bound friends...I'll be thinking of you and eager to see you when you are home visiting...make it soon, okay?