I know many people have school spirit. It's a big part of the "college experience" that is promoted throughout a freshman's first year at the university, and it is all truly great. Now, if you asked any of my friends, they would tell you that I am not the greatest example of school spirit. I don't think I even have an Eastern New Mexico University shirt in my closet or even one with the school colors of green and silver. I mean, I don't have anything against it, I'm just not a huge t-shirt guy and I'm not a huge fan of the colors, but the thing is there are many things that I appreciate about ENMU.

We are a small college. Driving into town, you can literally blink and drive past it, but hopefully less so now that we have a huge new stadium. That is one thing that I truly appreciate about ENMU. I can honestly say that I have been on a first-name basis with all of the teachers I've had throughout my college career. They know me and they know what I'm going through, so it makes it easier to go to them and ask for help or an extension when you are dying from all your homework.

This also makes it a lot easier to make friends. You are all going through this isolation together, so it makes it a bit easier to come up with things to do when you all are bored out of your minds, just make sure it is nothing illegal. Portales is in the middle of nowhere and weekends can seem to drag on forever with nothing to do. So watching Netflix with your friends will become a frequent, and awesome, pass-time.

There are also tons of close-knit groups and organizations to get involved in. Of course you can find things like film clubs and fraternities on just about any campus, it seems that they are closer at small colleges. We also have just about every church and denomination represented on campus with some awesome small groups to get involved with. College is a great time to look for spiritual awakening and growth, and college religious groups are often a lot more open to questioning and struggles than the typical church, so it is much easier to find a home.

I am nearly finished here at ENMU, but there isn't any point of going here that I regret. Yeah, I regret some choices in who I became friends with and that major change, but the experience really will stick with me. Though I may not always show it, I am proud to be a Greyhound.