Learning to Love Again

I was in the bookstore when I first felt that fluttering in my stomach, that flush of delight spreading across my face. I knew I had learned love again, despite more than a few previous sentiments to the contrary and an attitude that had been less than conducive to this new feeling. Yet there it was, filling my heart with joy and quickening my breath.
Who or what is this mysterious being for whom I have fallen?
Why, the University of Pittsburgh, of course.
That afternoon in the bookstore I had just purchased the last of my textbooks for the year and I proceeded to saunter through the upstairs of the store, enjoying the various Pitt memorabilia. Upon discovering the jewelry section I was pleased to find a round pendant on a thin gold chain (which is by far my favorite style of jewelry) with the crest of the University on it. It was then that I realized how much I really truly love being here. I will be proud on graduation day in 2012 to accept my diploma from this university and to accept the crest as a sign of my undergrad experience for years and years to come. I will take delight in telling my grandchildren, or grandnieces and -nephews, that I graduated from the University of Pittsburgh.
Now, for those of you who don't know the story behind this whole situation, it may seem... well kind of lame. "So what?" you may say, "everyone loves their college." Allow me to assure you that this is not the case here. I had my heart positively set on attending the University of Maryland, but some financial aid issues prevented that dream from coming true, and I was forced to fall back on my acceptance to Pitt, which I had only applied to as a backup school. It was too close to home, I thought, and too full of kids from my high school. I was skeptical about my ever really being truly happy here, even after almost a week on campus.
Pitt is still very close to home and there are still a lot of kids from my high school here, but that doesn't really matter anymore, because it's so much more than that, too. The faculty cares so much about their students; the opportunities seem positively boundless. There are many many different kinds of people, each bringing something unique to the college scene. The classes I am taking are brilliantly engaging and even enjoyable thus far, furthering my conviction that this university is the place to be for me. Even the campus, which I originally thought would never compare to the beautifully rolling quads and red brick buildings of UM, has surprised me with its striking beauty and close relationship with the city itself. There is no set campus, rather, gorgeous University buildings scattered throughout a section of Pittsburgh. The Cathedral of Learning, once my sole consolation for attending this school, has become, for me, a symbolic and central building to the entire Pitt experience. I love going to class in such an intricately pleasing building, so large and yet so welcoming with its many nooks and crannies and the floors and floors of offices full of people who are more than happy to be approached with a question or a problem.
Bottom line: I'm so happy to be attending the University of Pittsburgh!