When my five-year-old self sat on the Nittany Lion ion shrine at my first football weekend, I knew Penn State was my place. I have loved everything about Penn State for as long as I can remember: the campus, the people, the town, and most importantly, the ice cream.

Step one foot on campus and you are guaranteed to be taken over by the contagious energy that is in the air. State College is the ultimate college town— one that I've always been eager to be part of. I got to experience Penn State all the time as a kid. My parents are both alumni, and we would visit every chance we got. The best weekends included me and 106,000 other cheering fans in the metal bleachers of Beaver Stadium. An atmosphere better than any other in college football, one that I wanted to experience for four years.

Then the time came to decide where I would spend my college years, and I worked hard on my applications and submitted them early. After that came the dreadful waiting, with no signs of how long, I just had to wait. Acceptance letters from other schools arrived in the mail. I got excited, but no excitement matched how I felt when I got the news from Penn State. Knowing that as long as I was accepted I was going to go, reading that letter was such a cool moment. My decision was made, Penn State was my new home, and I was so happy.

Time has flown by since then, I graduated from high school and had an amazing summer. Now summer is winding down and school is set to begin, but it's different now. This time instead of a few new binders and notebooks to get ready for another year of high school, I have my closet packed in storage bins and probably way too many other things that aren't going to fit in my little dorm room. All of this change is like flipping the page and starting a new chapter. Leaving home is a bit intimidating, but I think this time I'll look fear in the eyes and wink at it because I'm ready for this— I always have been.

Fast forward thirteen years from that little girl on the shrine, the future that seemed so far away is finally here. So I guess I have been and always will be a proud Penn Stater