Heil to Old IU

I received my college diploma in the mail the other day, which can be a weird experience. As I opened the envelope and held my 8x10 inch piece of cardboard in my hands, all I could manage to think was: "Is this it?" After four years of classes, late nights, exams, papers, cramming sessions, and a roller coaster of emotions all I have to prove that I did it is a piece of cardboard with few signatures on it? I sort of feel like I've been hosed. Afterall, it's not like anyone will ever ask to see my college diploma. However this whole ordeal forces me to reflect on my college years in a different way. College is not about "proof" or learning a particular craft or trade such as business or journalism. College is about getting an education, and that "education" can be viewed in several ways. There is the academic education and the life experience education. My years at IU were probably the most influential on me becoming the man I am today. Never before had I been so challenged in so many ways. Never before had I been broken so far down and built back up. I got to meet some great people. I got to do some great things. Few of these examples were in the classroom but in the world I lived in around the classroom. I know I'm never going to feel that way again. I look back at how naive I was about the bigger world around me and I can't help but laugh. I may never actually use my "journalism degree" but my four years at Indiana University made me a stronger person and I am grateful for the time I spent there. The fact that I will not return to Bloomington this fall still has not quite sunk in yet, but no matter what I do or where I go, I will always take the time to say "Heil to Old IU!"