A Sprint Down Memory Lane

The sun set gently in the summer sky as I emerged from my tutoring session.

I hadn't gotten my day's cardio in, and had been thinking about putting in a run tonight.

There were probably about 20 minutes of daylight left.

I faced a ten-minute ride home.

I prefer not to run in the dark.

As I set one foot in my car, a thought popped up.

I've got my running clothes in the trunk.

ISU's right across the street.

I used to run around campus all the time 20 years ago, but haven't since.

It's also brightly lit at night.

After a Superman-like parking lot change, I was off to the races with my keys and phone in hand.

The well-trimmed landscape, newly-minted buildings, and fond memories caused the minutes to fly by as I weaved in, out and around handfuls of students.

I ran past Julian Hall, where I registered for classes and once occupied at 2 a.m. chasing down a stray semicolon in a mainframe program for a computer class.

Past Moulton Hall, where the Honors Student Organization held its meetings, and where I spent the occasional evening in my early work years studying for an actuarial exam.

Past the Center for the Visual Arts, where I discovered how much I actually enjoyed art history, and where Dena spent many an hour.

Past DeGarmo Hall, adorned top to bottom by shiny glass windows... surprisingly, none of which were currently broken.

Past Stevenson Hall, home of my math major and my earliest math tutoring career, which now abuts an ornate student walkway that was partially funded by our senior class gift to the university.

Past the Bone Student Center, where I used to camp waiting for the Peoria Charter bus to drive me back home.

Past Edwards Hall, site of my first college class, and the Capen movie theater.

Past the basketball court where I first met the man who would, five years later, introduce me to my wife.

Past the place where Walker Hall, my four-year dorm, once stood. It's now a gleaming new fitness center. Good call.

My legs even carried me to places on campus that I'd never been during my undergrad years.

I tell you, those college days were some of the best years I've ever spent.

They were a launching pad of personal success that I'd never previously known.

That which I have and am today, is in no small part due to my Illinois State experience.