Let’s start with a background of my high school experience. Jenks is a large school with around 3500 students and faculty. I absolutely loved high school and I like to think that I had a lot of good friends! Eventually, however, I reached that inevitable time where I had to start my college search. It is a well known fact that every high school has a corresponding college which EVERYONE goes to; I know that you understand what I’m talking about. My graduating class, for example, had around 716 students and nearly half of them went to the same school. For the purpose of this post we will refer to this school as “Jenks 13th Grade.”

To be completely honest, I seriously contemplated going to “Jenks 13th Grade” instead of TU. The difficulty of this decision was compounded by the fact that my best friend and my girlfriend were both going to “Jenks 13th Grade.” I visited the campus of “Jenks 13th Grade” and planned out where I would room with my friends and what campus life would be like. But deep down I just wasn’t satisfied. “Jenks 13th Grade” lacked that essential feeling with which TU abounds. For the longest while I did not know how to label this feeling. I couldn’t tell if it was fueled by the atmosphere of the beautiful and relaxing campus, the rigorous but supportive academic environment, or the incredible student and faculty body. I finally discovered what this feeling is in these past two weeks.

I have gone through several hardships this September including the death of a friend. Over  the second to last weekend of September I drove to “Jenks 13th Grade” to visit my girlfriend. While I was there some complications arose and to make a long story short, the distance was too much to handle-so we broke up. So guys, there I was… driving back to Tulsa at midnight feeling like my world had been torn apart. As I dejectedly circled Tucker Drive, approaching my dorm (Fisher South is the best), I remember thinking to myself *sigh* “home…” That was when it hit me- TU is not just a college destination for me, it is my home. These perfectly manicured lawns and beautiful buildings, the academic intensity and support, and the incredible people from all walks of life and all corners of the world all come together to create this phenomenal cosmic feeling of “home.”

It is a difficult thing to stray from the beaten path, to leave your friends, and to go somewhere that you may feel alone. And while there may be a feeling called loneliness I can assure you that you will never be alone at TU. Whether you come with all of your friends, or some of your friends, or none of your friends and whether or not you have a significant other there are an infinite number of opportunities and relationships waiting for you here. Thank you for reading my first post ladies and gents! There will be more to come! This is Thomas  wishing you a warm welcome to TU and a warm welcome home.

Stay classy Tulsa.