“Why do you go there?” I was asked once again at my job while on break in California. I answered in the same sigh-filled tone I always do when asked this question. The sigh was not because I was tired of the question, but because I knew the listener would never understand.

Having grown up in California, my friends, family, coworkers, customers, etc. never seem able to grasp the reason I left the Golden State for the Sooner State. Just as when I tell people in Oklahoma that I’m from California, the same question arrives: “Why are you here?”

No, I am not attending the University of Oklahoma because I received scholarships. No, I am not attending my lovely school because I am an OU Scholar. I don’t have family in Oklahoma. I didn’t go there for a specific program.

I went there because the moment I stepped on that campus, I fell in love. Simple as that.

I have been lucky enough to have parents who encourage travel. My father has actually been to 49 of the 50 states (sorry Vermont, we will come visit soon). My mother has called California her home her whole life, and always told us to venture out and experience new places -- and boy, am I glad she did.

I have visited many states in my short 20 years. I have done many road trips throughout the country. I have seen most of the land that my friends at home will never see. The true American soil that makes up the Land of the Free. I have followed many truck drivers on two-lane highways and seen crop dusters in the air while passing by. I have seen more cows than I knew existed and stopped at a small family peach stand in Arkansas (best peaches I ever had). I have driven with the trains that carry goods to all the stores across the country. I have seen the plateaus of New Mexico, I have found my favorite restaurants in Amarillo, Texas, I have been in vinyl stores, yarn stores, guitar stores, small coffee shops, diners, and sketchy areas across the country. I have realized that I am incredibly lucky to experience such things. It has also influenced my future career goals as I think of being a travel writer.

Traveling like this has made me realize how differently people live throughout our country. I have met some of the nicest people while on road trips with my family. I have had coffee with four older women in a small town named Davis. I met women in a yarn store with my mother in Arkansas who talked about how they carry their guns in their handbags. I have met people on airplanes who told me about their jobs, passions, etc. I never see them again, but I remember them. I remember the conversations I have with them. I remember how kind they were to me. The true essence of what Americans should be.

I attend the University of Oklahoma so that I can succeed not only academically but also culturally. I get to visit my friends that live on farms and in small towns. Friends that live in huge cities like Dallas. I get to realize that I have an option when it comes to my future and choosing where I want to live and my lifestyle. I get to branch out and see the choices I have in my life.

I get to see why football is such a big deal in the South. You grow up knowing the college team you root for. My mother was once told a joke by a man from Alabama that on your birth certificate you receive either an “Alabama” or “Auburn” stamp. I see the real tailgates. I know what mudding and float trips are now. I have received the word y’all in my everyday vocabulary. I get to live simply, and happily. I get to do things none of my friends who stay in California will ever do.

Jason Aldean sings, “They’ve never drove through Indiana/Met the man who plowed that earth/Planted that seed/Busted his ass for you and me/Or caught a harvest moon in Kansas/They’d understand why God made those flyover states.” This couldn’t be more true. Later in the song, Aldean sings about Oklahoma saying, “On the plains of Oklahoma, with a windshield sunset, in your eyes, like a watercolored painted sky.” I can honestly say I have been able to see that amazing and breathtaking sight.

I attended the University of Oklahoma for its beautiful campus. Because of its well-known name and good academics. Because of the football. Because before I even went to school there, Barry Switzer walked by me and said “Boomer Sooner.” Because of how nice people were to me when I first visited the state. Because of the traditions within the school. Because I get to road trip there all the time with my family and see America. I attended the University of Oklahoma because I knew it would create a new home for me. I fell in love, simple as that.