state highway

State Highway Andy Morgan

It was a blistering hot July afternoon, with all the windows up and the air conditioning on maximum, the young boy questioned again why he was going to take college level courses when he had only recently finished his junior year in high school. He felt like it was a million degrees inside the red minivan. As he traveled in a South direction alone Arkansas State Highway 55, with the rhythmic beet of the tires on the road, he felt as thought he could feel each bump to its fullest, they were like waves on an ocean and symbolized everything he had over come and accomplished to make this journey. He not only over came his own self doubts about whether he can make it, but many who believed that he could not be successful in an environment with so many distractions. As he sat in the back of the minivan fears over the future began to surface in his head. "Will I make friends?" "Will I be comfortable so many miles away from home?" As these thoughts raced through his mind he felt alone and a cold shiver was sent through his body. He was no afraid and cold in the hot summer air. He knew consciously and logically that he was not alone. For his mother and grandmother sat next to him in the minivan and would do whatever they could to help him. But yet he realized something had changed. They were there but would some be gone and that he must draw strength, self-confidence, and a sense of security from within himself and not rely on the people around him to fulfill these feelings because they could not provide this for him. He must venture into the unknown, alone and could only receive a limited type of security and support from home. Regardless of which way the journey took him he could always count on them being there in case he fell or got lost during his month away.
As the red minivan crossed the state line passing from Arkansas into the mighty sate of Mississippi. The first image he saw was an eight foot by twelve foot flag of the state. He knew so little about their customs, beliefs and rituals. It was as if he were entering into a foreign country. As they drove up the main entrance he could see through the trees in the "Grove" the bright afternoon sun reflecting off the columns of the "Ole Miss" Lyceum. As his family helped him unload what seemed to not be enough possessions he checked into the dorms. As he opened the door he saw a blank white room that he could not imagine being used as anything but a prison cell. As the minivan pulled away the young boy felt mixed emotion, for he was truly on his own for a month.
His first night on campus would be anything but lonely and boring. As he got dressed to got a baseball game that the school had organized to give the summer students a chance to meet each other. He felt as though he was alone and there was no one on the entire campus that new who he was or what he was about. He sat down and this guy came up and introduced himself as Scott and asked him where he was from and what he liked to do. The conversation was filled with "y'all's" and "fixin". As the conversation wrapped up Scott asked me if I wanted to go to a party after the baseball game, the young boy accepted. As the game ended the young boy ran into Scott with a group of high school kids. The group went with Scott and ended up at a fraternity house. As the group walked in each person was introduced to other guys. The beer was flowing and many of the high school kids were quite drunk as the new group arrived. It was the young boys first encounter with serious drinking and the peer pressure felt from older fraternity guys.
As the first day of summer camp classes rolled around the young boy felt more and more confident that this would be the place for him in another year. He went to class and listened to the professor tell the class about what to expect and it all sounded quite complicated but he felt as though he were able to conquer anything. He fell into a routine and did not understand why everyone told him college was so hard. Then toward the end of the first week a test rolled around. He was not scared in the least bit. However he was slowly deflated as he sat in a History exam and looked at a page not knowing anything. After ninety minutes of realization, the professor looked at the young boy who had grown so much since the red minivan had dropped him off, and said with a distinct southern accent "well son, welcome to college courses