Vacation

Do you kids remember that old song "Vacation" by the Go-Go's?  I know that song may seem ancient to you, but it was pretty popular in all those 90's movies/tv shows I spent my summers watching on TV.  That song pretty much highlighted the two weeks of my family vacation that I took with your aunt, uncle, and grandparents- my immediate family.  Those two weeks were a ton of fun because I went down to Georgia to visit the family.  We started off in downtown Atlanta, but that didn't end well because of the ever increasing traffic and wrecks.  That's how I didn't become an Emory Eagle.  When we finally got out of Atlanta and into Snellville where my cousins were, we went shopping, swimming, and even tubing down the Chattahoochee River.  We also went to go see the movie Brave in theaters.  Kids, one piece of advice, you're never too old to go see a Disney or Pixar movie in theaters.  I had a whole lot of fun hanging out with your cousins and we even ended up in some crazy situations.  We had gone to go swimming down the street in the neighborhood pool, when the severe thunderstorm warnings came on the television.  When we looked outside, there wasn't a cloud in sight so we dismissed this warning (silly us).  We headed to the pool, which was about ten minutes away and by the time we got there, there was so much rain that we couldn't see the road.  Instead of blindly making our way back to the house, we decided to wait out the storm in your Aunt Sam's little Honda Civic.  We just chilled and listened to Country music as the rain continued to beat on the windshield and after about two hours, the storm finally passed.  Family vacations are always the best to go on because the kids don't have to worry about paying and you get to spend your time annoy your parents.  Or at least that's what our family seems to do- kids don't get any ideas.  After our week in Georgia, we trekked back to South Carolina to spend the 4th of July hanging out with our neighbors.  Your grandpa, my dad, came to pick us up to take us back home, but the car wasn't going to make that easy.  The little Honda decided to overheat and refused to start.  Dad had to call our neighbors to drive two hours to pick us up so that we could get home in time to celebrate the 4th.  Luckily, we have the nicest neighbors ever and they came to rescue us.  Here's another lesson kids- be nice to everyone you meet because you may never know when you might need to call upon a helping hand.  After we celebrated the 4th at home, I left for another family vacation, but this time it was only with my sister, brother, mom, and dad and we headed North to Maggie Valley, NC.  We stayed in a cottage up there and traveled to West Carolina to go whitewater rafting down the Nantahalla River.  We ended up getting kicked out of our cottage early due to miscommunication so we had to pack all our stuff in the van and take a road trip to Gatlinburg, TN.  Kids, just so you know for the future, miscommunication is the leading cause of death of relationships.  In Gatlinburg, we toured the city looking for something to do and finally settled on an aquarium visit.  After that we headed to Asheville, NC just for the heck of it and ate dinner at the Wild Wing Cafe.  We then traveled back to South Carolina where the roads were familiar and the feeling of home was present.  That, my dear kids, is why I didn't become a Boston College Eagle, a Rice Owl, a Wash U Bear, or a Notre Dame Leprechaun; I loved South Carolina and my home too much that I couldn't bear to leave it.

Orientation

Back on June 21-22 in the distant past, I experienced my first ever college orientation.  Now I know that you kids are going to be experiencing your very own in the next couple of days and I want to eliminate all your fears right now.  Summer O was a ton of fun and you guys have nothing to worry about.  I know how you both are feeling- worried about making a good first impression, nervous about meeting new people, and scared about picking the right classes to take in the fall.  I felt the exact same way and my biggest fear was that I was going to embarrass myself from the get go and that no one would want to talk to me.  Man, was I wrong though.  Everyone at the FU orientation was extremely welcoming including my new classmates.  I did, of course, end up embarrassing myself at the very beginning, but to my surprise, that just made me easier to talk to.  During lunch, I sat down at a table with complete strangers and looked around at all the faces of the people that were going to be my classmates for the upcoming year.  I wanted to make a good first impression and in my hurry to introduce myself, I knocked over a full glass of water which ended up in my lap.  I was so embarrassed and when I realized how ridiculous I looked, I started laughing.  Soon the entire table had joined me and that definitely broke the ice.  So my advice to you is to be yourself and don't be afraid to embarrass yourself because as long as you can laugh at yourself, then other people will be more comfortable around you and will feel less self-conscious about themselves.  The orientation staff and the incoming freshmen were so welcoming and after leaving Furman, I couldn't wait until O Week in the Fall.  Just remember that everyone at orientation is in the same boat- they are all pretty much surrounded by strangers and they want to make friends.  Knowing that, makes orientation less intimidating and more fun.  Of course, you have to sit through all of the meetings that are necessary for the school to go through and I know those may be boring, but they are important and if you can just get through those meetings, then you can get to the fun part- meeting new people.  Orientation was a lot of fun and it was a step on my way to fully becoming a Paladin.  I couldn't have been happier.

FROYO

It was back on June 18th, 2012 when I figured out that being a Paladin was what I wanted to be.
Your Uncle Kyle and I went to go see Madagascar 3, which was extremely cute.  We had seen every Madagascar movie together and we weren't about to ruin that tradition even though I was going off to college soon.  It was fun spending time with Kyle and after the movie, we then went out to get frozen yogurt, which I heard was the so-called "hot-spot" for college students.  My little brother and I just hung out, which we weren't able to do that often and it was nice to just spend time with him.  My advice to you is that you shouldn't forget where you came from no matter far away life takes you.  Family is stronger than most bonds you will forge and it is important to keep your family close to you.  Treasure them because you never know how long you'll have to spend with them.  Now, don't think for a second that me hanging out with my brother doesn't fit in with my story.  Wait for it...
After my brother and I got our hun cal froyo (if you get this reference- you're awesome), we headed back to the car.  Kyle, my 11 year old brother, opened the passenger side car door.  As he climbed into the seat, he turned to me and said, "Kiersten, I'm glad you're not going to Brown." Wondering where he was going with that, I asked him why.  He told me, "It's too far away.  What would I do without you to take me to movies and get food?"  And that is how I didn't become a Brown Bear.

Pilot

I'm gonna tell you an incredible story; a story about how I became a Paladin.  25 years ago, I started my journey towards becoming a Paladin.  It was way back in 2012, when I first applied to Furman and was accepted.  I know you too were just accepted and I wanted to tell you that I know exactly what you're going through.  Nervousness, fear, anxiety, and excitement- those feelings are going to be your friends until you finally arrive on campus for your first day of college.
June 16th, 2012 was a day of great excitement for me because I finally got everything ready for orientation.  I was going to orientation the following week and I couldn't wait.  I was excited to meet new people, but was also a bit nervous.  I'm sure you guys can relate.  While I'm catching you up on how I became a Paladin and my journey through the summer before college started, I've got some interesting stories to tell you about my life, including lessons I've learned and advice that you guys may be able to use in the future.  You guys should get comfortable because this is going to take awhile.