Senior Year

This has been a crazy year so far and it will only continue to be that way.  There are a few firsts here and there but also a lot of lasts.  Last first day, last rugby game, last women's soccer game, last football game and coming up the last volleyball game and men's soccer game.  As you can tell I brought it around to sports, because while I am here for school and a education, my fun times have always been at the sporting events at EIU.  While I have seen the seniors come and go the last few seasons it never really hit me as much until now.  I am a senior, so just like the people I have been watching, these are my last events too.  It is like saying good bye to a friend, you are happy for all the things you have done in the past, but sad that the road has reached its end.  It is crazy to think that I have gotten here.  Not much was really expected from me when I got here, other than my parents, but that doesn't really count.  I started off coming here and knowing 3-4 people tops, which when you put into perspective I had come from a high school of 4,000, it isn't much.  I didn't know everyone at my high school, but I did know a lot of people, maybe close to 20% or so.  I had known people from grade school and both school districts since I moved from one to the other after 4th grade.  So coming to EIU was different.  I had to start from the bottom and work my way up to where I am now.  I went from a nobody to a somebody by finding what I like and doing it well.  I worked at all the media publications you can pretty much think of at EIU.  I decided that I was going to go to all the sporting events, even if my friends wouldn't come with.  I found out I could still have fun, even if I had to do it alone.  But I got lucky, EIU had the Blue Crew and Panther Nation so I got to have friends with me at the games.  I also started to take some pictures just for the heck of it and then it grew and in a way became expected from me.  All the athletes started to know my name and wanted to have their pictures taken at their given sport.  I know that feeling.  I played baseball 11 years and soccer 7 years and never really had any pictures of me playing.  I always thought it would be cool, so the fact I can do it for others gives me joy.  They like it and I am glad they do.  It is also cool when I have parents come up to me and say thanks for taking pictures of their kids playing since they can't make all the games.  I will miss that about the games, but hopefully someone can walk in my path and do what I did and give the athletes the joys of photography and fan support.  I will miss just escaping from the stresses of school to relax at a game and cheer on my friends to a victory.  I just hope the basketball teams can do well this year and I can make one final trip to Nashville and watch EIU go out as a champion my last year here!