Places We Come From

Places We Come From

They say you never forget where you are when you hear life altering news. On April 16, 2007, I was in my car driving back to work from lunch. It was a beautiful spring day in Cincinnati. My window was down and The Frey was playing in the CD player. All of a sudden, my Nextel went off. It was the Sales Manager from work. He told me that there were reports coming in that there was a shooting at Virginia Tech. At least 22 had been confirmed dead...I just remember thinking to myself that this had to be some kind of mistake...Some kind of joke...

I was born and raised in Blacksburg. I attended Tech and graduated with a degree in Soc in 1998. My memories of the community, of the University? They are simply untouchable. The sweet smell after a spring or summer rain. The Dogwood trees. The limestone buildings. The Drillfield. The community that, eventhough I had moved away from, was still so much a part of me.

For the next week I watched with the rest of the world as Blacksburg and Virginia Tech took over every major station in America. However, I watched with a broken and heavy heart. What I felt, no one else around me could understand. I grieved with the Hokie Nation as if I were a part of it. Then I realized I still was.

Now, almost a full year later, my heart is still just as heavy as it was. I think of my beloved home and cringe at the thought of someone destroying its innocent sidewalks, buildings...The dorm where I had lived my freshman year.

Still, I know I will never forget where my home is. I will never forget where I came from. Most importantly, I will never forget where I was when I heard that so many of my Hokie family members had been taken from me far too soon. My only hope is that one day we will all be able to think about Virginia Tech and not forget. I hope too, one day we will be able to remember our happier times that the University gave us, as it helped make us into the strong adults that we are today.

Eryn Hunt

2008-04-13

Eryn Hunt

eng