These are a few memorable blogs from my past... and I'm talking a very long time ago. I started sorting through all of my old emails in my yahoo account. Some of these emails dated back to 2003. My livejournal blog has long been deleted and purged from the internet, but some of my entries were saved. They were saved because a copy of the post was emailed to my account whenever somebody replied to my posts. Along with my last entry, seeing these entires (some which I kept out for a reason) just reminds me of how immature I was as a freshman in college. Not all of them were immature, but I certainly had my moments. But without further adieu, here are a few of my blogs that were saved. I am going to add my own commentary in red. Enjoy!
September 27, 2004: My motivational message to the HT Band:
Well HT Band, I have news. Clay won their competition last night. They won "most entertaining band" and basically swept their competition last night. Clay only went up against one other band in their class, but apparently they kicked major tail last night. So we have a choice, sit here and pout over this competition, or get better for Clay and everybody else that we are going up against next week. Yeah we didn't win last night, but maybe this will open some people's eyes. I still have faith in this band, and I think that we can win a contest by the end of this year.
Some HT Band alumni from 2004 (I know who posted this) wrote this reply: "The judges were right in placing ya`ll last. Your show was nowhere near as exciting as it has been. There are too many marching and pitch problems for ya`ll to have placed any higher. Oak Mountain did a lot better job, and they were only third. Ya`ll need a miracle to happen."
His class (c/o 2004) never won a band competition. Our class would go on to win the next two contests.
June 8, 2005: The Graduation Blog
Well, wow. Graduation has come and gone and it was a lot of fun. I walked across the stage and so many things were running through my head as I got my diploma (or the case for it at least). When I got it, Mr. Hamilton said some stuff to me and then I went down and Coach Essig stopped me. He gave me a nut and a bolt, which is an inside joke between me and him... most of y'all might not understand it. But it was kind of funny anyway. My dad gave me a pat on the back and I was on my way. Then it didn't take long until everybody was done and we were all circling the field. I threw my hat through the goal post. But anyway, we all went and circled around each other and jumped and did the ESPN chant. That was actually my first time to be in the middle of all that... mainly because every time I was playing the song. But anyway, lots of pictures, lots of memories, and good times. It all ended with...
"Attention Mrs. Henderson's homeroom, please come back, somebody took two diplomas."
Flash forward- today.
I have taken my math test for college and all, and now I have Camp to go to. It is kinda hitting me now that I have only like two and a half months 'till college starts now. I sure hope band camp will be fun and it won't be like boot camp like it was my freshman year at HT. Oh well, things seem to be pretty relaxed there, so I guess I'm not too worried about it.
August 9, 2005: On my first day of band camp at Auburn University:
Tomorrow is the first day of band camp. I can't say that I am totally prepared for it. Either way, I am excited about going. We are going to be doing stuff from 11 until 11 at night. Today was Jacob's first day of work at Toomer's. While he was working, Nathan, Ben, Jonathan, and I walked around campus. There is a lot of construction going on here right now. (Little did I know how much more construction there would be on campus) I got my Tiger Club Card working finally. (And then never used it) Tomorrow I have to get my parking sticker.. Ugh... And I'm not totally sure where Beard-Eaves Coliseum (HAHA wow!) is. I just wanted to say to Byrd and Martin that I appreciate the nice comments that y'all left me. It really makes me feel like I had an impact on somebody's life in some way. Well, tomorrow is a big day for me... (Yes it was...) and I don't feel like staying up 'till 2 in the morning tonight.
August 11, 2005: On my freshman year band camp schedule:
Ok, here is a sample of a day in the life of me... now.
9:00 P.M. I was driving around and I saw Tim walking down a street so I decided to pick him up and take him to my apartment.
9:15 P.M. Nathan takes us to the Scavenger hunt.
11:00 P.M. I come home from the RAT Scavenger Hunt. It was kind of lame... it was just like Camp War Eagle... all we did was go around and look at stuff and sing the Alma Mater. (Haha, that's about right).
12:00 A.M. I finally arrive at the apartment, and there are like all these people here. (I don't remember who they were... but they were probably Chi Alpha people) But they were cool people.
1:00 A.M. I finally start to go to bed.
5:00 A.M. Wake up and go to Wal-Mart. (This was the second day of band camp. I had no water cooler the day before so this is why I made such an early trip to Wal-Mart in the morning)
7:30 A.M. Band camp part duex.
12:15 - 1:00 P.M. I came home and ate a Hot Pocket... only to leave 45 minutes later.
3:45 P.M. (Currently) I am so tired... I am running on 4 hours of sleep. I have to go get my uniform at 5 now. And then we have rehearsal from 7:30-9:30....
Anyway, I'll fill you in on the AU Band Camp. So far it has only been two days. Yesterday was not so good. Today was okay. The parking here sucks. (Little did I know it would only get worse) I have to walk through this garden every time I want to get to the band field. (I still walk through "The Arboretum" every day to practice) I have met a lot of new people... nothing really to write home about though. The band here is much harder than it is at Hewitt. You people have NO clue how easy you have it. So be thankful!! Anyway, I'm out. I have to leave in 30 minutes now...
October 3, 2005: On the Auburn v. South Carolina Game:
The game last night rocked. I loved it. (It was truly a great show! All around it was a fun time!) Wishful thinking, but wouldn't it be cool if the Iron Bowl decided who wins the SEC West? Anyway, the team is starting to really shape up. Pregame was the most exciting pregame that I've done so far.(The 2005 Iron Bowl would go on to top this pregame) The football team all went right by me, they were all arm in arm. Holy crap it was freakin' awesome! The show was by far the most energetic show I have ever done! We all got into this form at the end of the show and started playing Bohemian Rhapsody to the student section... man, they went wild. At the part were the guitar solo is (In the Queen version) we all just ran in together and rocked out to it. Yeah, I never thought I'd be rocking out to Queen-- on my trombone. That was the 5th home game in a row for us, and man, it went by fast. We still have a good while to go, but time really does go by fast when you're having fun.
February 21, 2006: On Quotes and Valentine's Day:
(These are all pretty self-explanatory)
I have heard some golden quotes over the past few days.. I'll bore you with them right now.
"Somebody 'bout to get thar ass whooped" - Random Black Guy that lives down from me.
Kind of a funny incident... it was on Valentine's day... and a herd of black girls came to the guy's apartment and caused a major CF. I tried to videotape it, but for my own safety, I fled back into my apartment and listened on in amazement. There were some rednecks outside laughing at them... I presume that somebody cheated on somebody, and this was revenge. Nathan got caught up in the chaos, and the herd ran past him leaving in a hurry. Then random black guy came up to Nathan and thus, the the optimistic quote of the week was born.
I ran into an old Auburn alum at a mall this weekend... He came up to me and started talking about Auburn and he thought it was the greatest thing ever that I was a freshman at Auburn and that I was in the band. He even grabbed me by the arm and "escorted" me to his wife to introduce me. I was pretty freaked out by this man who probably had Alzheimer's... but the quote went something like this...
"Yeah I am a freshman and I am in the band at Auburn"
"You're in the band!?"
"Yes, sir"
"God Bless You, Son... God Bless You."
I hope that you have enjoyed checking these out.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Acknowledgement, Pt 1.
It's time to write down an account of my time here at Auburn. I absolutely love to write, and this project will be tough, but worth every minute I spend on it.
Sometimes I think there's a certain point that you reach in college where you just grow up. You' know that you're not a newbie at Auburn anymore, and you realize your time here is beginning to come to an end. You start to get tired of listening to freshmen and sophomores talking about getting drunk and making out with however many girls/guys (I always hated those kind of conversations anyway- NOBODY CARES HOW DRUNK YOU GOT LAST NIGHT!). I can feel it as I walk through the concourse when I ignore the SGA presidential candidates trying to give me flyers. I can even pick out who is a freshman and who isn't. Even though it's only a sophomore level class, I know that I am surrounded by them in my World Literature II class just by the way they act. It has hit me that I am graduating in one year now. That's pretty scary! I remember when I started here, things were new. I wanted to meet everybody and discover new ways of having fun. Everyday was sunshine and roses.
Since my freshman year in 2005, things have considerably slowed down. I walk everyday to class after I park in the parking lot farthest away from campus, just so I can drink in Auburn as I walk. I enjoy reading books outside in the sunshine while watching the other students walk to class. It's fun to watch all the high school seniors walk around on tours. I like seeing all those people smile as they listen to the tour guide and look around in awe of the campus. It's a beautiful campus to be a apart of here at Auburn. I don't know why I enjoy these things, but I guess it just brings me some peace of mind. It means so much to me. I guess it reminds me of me back in those days as a senior in high school.
I first came to Auburn for a "War Eagle Day" in the fall of 2004. The campus was different back then, as you had a street with cars going through present day Cater Lawn. All of the students seemed so happy as they walked to class. I saw my future roommate (Nathan) walking with a friend to class. Things seemed to be going awesome for him, and it made me want to come to Auburn. I even saw my other future roommate (Ben) eating a sandwich outside of the Haley Center. I was with my father on that day, and I remember walking to the Foy Ballroom to listen to a speaker tell us about Auburn. He knew every high school mascot in all of America, and I found that amusing to say the least. There were a few other high school friends that joined me on this trip, although they were with their own parents. I think it hit me how much I wanted to come to Auburn when we walked towards Samford Tower. I just knew this was a special place when I looked up at that magnificent building. I told my father at that very moment that this was the place that I wanted to go for college.
Sometimes I think there's a certain point that you reach in college where you just grow up. You' know that you're not a newbie at Auburn anymore, and you realize your time here is beginning to come to an end. You start to get tired of listening to freshmen and sophomores talking about getting drunk and making out with however many girls/guys (I always hated those kind of conversations anyway- NOBODY CARES HOW DRUNK YOU GOT LAST NIGHT!). I can feel it as I walk through the concourse when I ignore the SGA presidential candidates trying to give me flyers. I can even pick out who is a freshman and who isn't. Even though it's only a sophomore level class, I know that I am surrounded by them in my World Literature II class just by the way they act. It has hit me that I am graduating in one year now. That's pretty scary! I remember when I started here, things were new. I wanted to meet everybody and discover new ways of having fun. Everyday was sunshine and roses.
Since my freshman year in 2005, things have considerably slowed down. I walk everyday to class after I park in the parking lot farthest away from campus, just so I can drink in Auburn as I walk. I enjoy reading books outside in the sunshine while watching the other students walk to class. It's fun to watch all the high school seniors walk around on tours. I like seeing all those people smile as they listen to the tour guide and look around in awe of the campus. It's a beautiful campus to be a apart of here at Auburn. I don't know why I enjoy these things, but I guess it just brings me some peace of mind. It means so much to me. I guess it reminds me of me back in those days as a senior in high school.
I first came to Auburn for a "War Eagle Day" in the fall of 2004. The campus was different back then, as you had a street with cars going through present day Cater Lawn. All of the students seemed so happy as they walked to class. I saw my future roommate (Nathan) walking with a friend to class. Things seemed to be going awesome for him, and it made me want to come to Auburn. I even saw my other future roommate (Ben) eating a sandwich outside of the Haley Center. I was with my father on that day, and I remember walking to the Foy Ballroom to listen to a speaker tell us about Auburn. He knew every high school mascot in all of America, and I found that amusing to say the least. There were a few other high school friends that joined me on this trip, although they were with their own parents. I think it hit me how much I wanted to come to Auburn when we walked towards Samford Tower. I just knew this was a special place when I looked up at that magnificent building. I told my father at that very moment that this was the place that I wanted to go for college.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
New Semester, New Direction
Man, I'm really horrible about updating these blogs.... but here it goes. Well, the spring semester has begun, and it has been pretty hectic so far. One noticeable difference in this semester from the rest is the lack of me being in any kind of band what-so-ever. I think I still have a little gas in the tank for one more marching season. I think it would be an awesome accomplishment to be able to march 4 years in high school and 4 years in college. I know that just in the trombones there are only 4 original members of the 2005 RAT class, and I am not sure if all of us are even coming back next year or not. Band was a lot different this past year. Whereas I lost contact with a lot of people, I also met a ton of new people.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
A Matter of Heart
8/29/2007
Growing up, it was always fascinating to listen to the Auburn legends of Pat Sullivan and Ralph "Shug" Jordan. I would always fill up with wonder when my aunts and uncles would talk about Bo Jackson and Pat Dye while they went to Auburn for college. I grew up during the Terry Bowden era, and there were some amazing runs during that time in Auburn football. In Trussville, where I grew up, it sometimes felt that it might as well should have been painted Crimson and White. Our star quarterback that defined "Hewitt-Trussville" was famed Alabama quarterback Jay Barker. Not until my freshman year of high school we had somebody else take the reigns of football greatness at Hewitt-Trussville. His name was Brandon Cox. Although my memory of him is fuzzy, his senior year was by far the best year of football during my stay at the high school. Every play seemed to be a Brandon Cox pass to Lee Guess for the touchdown. Hewitt's amazing season was over with a loss to the Hoover Buccaneers with a little known quarterback named John Parker Wilson taking the snaps.
Fast forward a few years. My freshman year started like it did my freshman year in high school- with Brandon Cox the starting quarterback. I'll always remember that year because Cox made a clutch 4th down pass to a 31-30 win over the University of Georgia. My first Iron Bowl was a massacre- we sacked Brodie Croyle 11 times and beat the mighty Tide 28-18.
Sophomore year we came out swinging. Washington State was another massacre. Our first test was against a highly ranked LSU team. We beat them in the closest game I've ever witnessed, as we went on to win 7-3. I thought that nothing could top that win, but again I was proved wrong by my Tigers. #2 Florida came into our house with a senior quarterback in Chris Leak and a cocky freshman named Tim Tebow. Although we were down at halftime, our defense helped us win 27-17. There were no offensive touchdowns in the game. Jordan-Hare Stadium had never been that loud.
And then came this year, which is my Junior year. With losing great players such as Kenny Irons, Courtney Taylor and Ben Grubbs, I knew this year could be tough. Our first game was a true fight, but we prevailed against Kansas State. Then came South Florida and Mississippi State. Both were upsets, and resulted in the booing of our quarterback. Many felt he had lost his touch, and demanded Kodi Burns to take his place. I never booed Brandon, I have always cheered for him since he's a fellow Hewitt graduate, so I was eager to see if he could redeem himself.
Throughout my life, I always dreamed of being apart of one of those "legend" games. You know what I'm talking about, the kind of games that you will want to tell your grandchildren one day. A game that truly shows the character of man. 1972's "Punt Bama Punt." 1982's "Bo Over The Top." 1989's "Iron Bowl." 1994's win over #1 ranked Florida.
Hearing about these kind victories always made me happy. I would especially get excited when the I heard the old legend of when Terry Bowden's 1994 Team beat #1 Florida in the Swamp. My chance to invade the swamp came on Saturday the 29th.
The Swamp is an intimidating place. The fans are loud, but not as obnoxious and rude as LSU fans. As I entered into the stadium, all I could think about was how this was the place Steve Spurrier built. Nobody gave us a chance to beat the then #4 ranked Florida Gators. Lou Holtz even said our chances of us beating Florida were as good as him becoming Senator of Florida. We were supposed to be a 21 point underdog in this game. Florida had not lost a home football game since late 2004. And oh yeah, by the way, the last time we won at The Swamp was that fateful game in 1994 where Patrick Nix found Frank Sanders in the endzone with 30-odd seconds left in the 4th quarter to beat #1 ranked Florida. Earlier in the season, Auburn had lost to a talented South Florida team. Mississippi State came next, and dealt a serious blow to Auburn's confidence. Auburn redeemed itself after a dominating victory over New Mexico State a week earlier. The week leading up to this Florida game, I just had a special feeling inside. I knew that big things were in store for Auburn. I had not had this feeling since the 2005 Iron Bowl when Alabama was favored to beat us at home.
Early in the game we scored. However, cheesy this may sound, all I could think about were all the times I had seen the AU flag fly. Images of Samford Hall and Toomer's flooded through my mind. I, along with my Auburn brothers and sisters went nuts when that first touchdown was scored by Kodi Burns, a freshman quarterback. I looked down at my hand, and it was shaking. A few possessions later, Florida got into field goal range, only for their attempt to be blocked. This was shaping up to be huge. Every cheer that was called I yelled. Every time Florida was on offense I yelled. Every time we played a song, I played every note as loud as I could on my trombone. Auburn got the ball back and eventually scored once again by a run from runningback Ben Tate. Again, images from my experiences at Auburn just flooded through my mind. It was almost indescribable. I started to get chills. My hand was shaking even more. Could it be that I get to experience a win in The Swamp? Could I share an experience with those that witnessed that famous 1994 victory? Florida fought back mightily. Florida scored to tie the game 17-17 near the fourth quarter. My hopes never faded for Auburn. I had had a special feeling about my Tigers all week leading up to the game. We got the ball back and quickly went three and out, giving Florida another chance to score on one last possession. And then something amazing happened. Our defense, which had to have been tired, came out and stopped them in the their tracks. Three and out for Florida. They punt the ball away. A drive, led by Brandon Cox and Ben Tate set up one last attempt for us to kick a field goal to win the game. Our kicker, Wes Byrum, had been doing a good job, but I couldn't help thinking that because he was a freshman he would crack under the pressure of kicking a game-winning field goal. Especially in The Swamp. The field goal unit came on the field, and it felt like time stood still for a while. I had a certain calm come around me, and I remember yelling "I believe!!" The kick went up, and it was good!! The Auburn fans screamed, yelled, went crazy. We then found out that Urban Meyer, Florida's head coach, had called a timeout before the kick. This set up another kick for Byrum to make. Once again, time stood still, and nothing else mattered. I still believed in the Tigers. The kick went up, and went straight through the uprights. It was good, again!! Everybody went crazy, I jumped up and down and pumped my trombone up in the air. My dream had come true- I had just wintessed the Auburn Tigers upset the Florida Gators in The Swamp!
Growing up, it was always fascinating to listen to the Auburn legends of Pat Sullivan and Ralph "Shug" Jordan. I would always fill up with wonder when my aunts and uncles would talk about Bo Jackson and Pat Dye while they went to Auburn for college. I grew up during the Terry Bowden era, and there were some amazing runs during that time in Auburn football. In Trussville, where I grew up, it sometimes felt that it might as well should have been painted Crimson and White. Our star quarterback that defined "Hewitt-Trussville" was famed Alabama quarterback Jay Barker. Not until my freshman year of high school we had somebody else take the reigns of football greatness at Hewitt-Trussville. His name was Brandon Cox. Although my memory of him is fuzzy, his senior year was by far the best year of football during my stay at the high school. Every play seemed to be a Brandon Cox pass to Lee Guess for the touchdown. Hewitt's amazing season was over with a loss to the Hoover Buccaneers with a little known quarterback named John Parker Wilson taking the snaps.
Fast forward a few years. My freshman year started like it did my freshman year in high school- with Brandon Cox the starting quarterback. I'll always remember that year because Cox made a clutch 4th down pass to a 31-30 win over the University of Georgia. My first Iron Bowl was a massacre- we sacked Brodie Croyle 11 times and beat the mighty Tide 28-18.
Sophomore year we came out swinging. Washington State was another massacre. Our first test was against a highly ranked LSU team. We beat them in the closest game I've ever witnessed, as we went on to win 7-3. I thought that nothing could top that win, but again I was proved wrong by my Tigers. #2 Florida came into our house with a senior quarterback in Chris Leak and a cocky freshman named Tim Tebow. Although we were down at halftime, our defense helped us win 27-17. There were no offensive touchdowns in the game. Jordan-Hare Stadium had never been that loud.
And then came this year, which is my Junior year. With losing great players such as Kenny Irons, Courtney Taylor and Ben Grubbs, I knew this year could be tough. Our first game was a true fight, but we prevailed against Kansas State. Then came South Florida and Mississippi State. Both were upsets, and resulted in the booing of our quarterback. Many felt he had lost his touch, and demanded Kodi Burns to take his place. I never booed Brandon, I have always cheered for him since he's a fellow Hewitt graduate, so I was eager to see if he could redeem himself.
Throughout my life, I always dreamed of being apart of one of those "legend" games. You know what I'm talking about, the kind of games that you will want to tell your grandchildren one day. A game that truly shows the character of man. 1972's "Punt Bama Punt." 1982's "Bo Over The Top." 1989's "Iron Bowl." 1994's win over #1 ranked Florida.
Hearing about these kind victories always made me happy. I would especially get excited when the I heard the old legend of when Terry Bowden's 1994 Team beat #1 Florida in the Swamp. My chance to invade the swamp came on Saturday the 29th.
The Swamp is an intimidating place. The fans are loud, but not as obnoxious and rude as LSU fans. As I entered into the stadium, all I could think about was how this was the place Steve Spurrier built. Nobody gave us a chance to beat the then #4 ranked Florida Gators. Lou Holtz even said our chances of us beating Florida were as good as him becoming Senator of Florida. We were supposed to be a 21 point underdog in this game. Florida had not lost a home football game since late 2004. And oh yeah, by the way, the last time we won at The Swamp was that fateful game in 1994 where Patrick Nix found Frank Sanders in the endzone with 30-odd seconds left in the 4th quarter to beat #1 ranked Florida. Earlier in the season, Auburn had lost to a talented South Florida team. Mississippi State came next, and dealt a serious blow to Auburn's confidence. Auburn redeemed itself after a dominating victory over New Mexico State a week earlier. The week leading up to this Florida game, I just had a special feeling inside. I knew that big things were in store for Auburn. I had not had this feeling since the 2005 Iron Bowl when Alabama was favored to beat us at home.
Early in the game we scored. However, cheesy this may sound, all I could think about were all the times I had seen the AU flag fly. Images of Samford Hall and Toomer's flooded through my mind. I, along with my Auburn brothers and sisters went nuts when that first touchdown was scored by Kodi Burns, a freshman quarterback. I looked down at my hand, and it was shaking. A few possessions later, Florida got into field goal range, only for their attempt to be blocked. This was shaping up to be huge. Every cheer that was called I yelled. Every time Florida was on offense I yelled. Every time we played a song, I played every note as loud as I could on my trombone. Auburn got the ball back and eventually scored once again by a run from runningback Ben Tate. Again, images from my experiences at Auburn just flooded through my mind. It was almost indescribable. I started to get chills. My hand was shaking even more. Could it be that I get to experience a win in The Swamp? Could I share an experience with those that witnessed that famous 1994 victory? Florida fought back mightily. Florida scored to tie the game 17-17 near the fourth quarter. My hopes never faded for Auburn. I had had a special feeling about my Tigers all week leading up to the game. We got the ball back and quickly went three and out, giving Florida another chance to score on one last possession. And then something amazing happened. Our defense, which had to have been tired, came out and stopped them in the their tracks. Three and out for Florida. They punt the ball away. A drive, led by Brandon Cox and Ben Tate set up one last attempt for us to kick a field goal to win the game. Our kicker, Wes Byrum, had been doing a good job, but I couldn't help thinking that because he was a freshman he would crack under the pressure of kicking a game-winning field goal. Especially in The Swamp. The field goal unit came on the field, and it felt like time stood still for a while. I had a certain calm come around me, and I remember yelling "I believe!!" The kick went up, and it was good!! The Auburn fans screamed, yelled, went crazy. We then found out that Urban Meyer, Florida's head coach, had called a timeout before the kick. This set up another kick for Byrum to make. Once again, time stood still, and nothing else mattered. I still believed in the Tigers. The kick went up, and went straight through the uprights. It was good, again!! Everybody went crazy, I jumped up and down and pumped my trombone up in the air. My dream had come true- I had just wintessed the Auburn Tigers upset the Florida Gators in The Swamp!
Monday, September 24, 2007
Social Commentary I: "Still In Rome"
"Still in Rome"
The sweat on his face, the dissonance of his voice, and the message he spoke is still etched into my memory. His message, although deemed invalid by most, spoke volumes more than what he intended it to do. Two years ago, I began my freshman year at Auburn University. I chose to go there because I felt that I needed to explore the world outside of my hometown. I am from Trussville, Alabama, which is comparable to the town of Mayberry in The Andy Griffith Show. The community I grew up in was small and harmonious. Sometimes it felt like people felt safe there because there were no major controversies, no major events, and everybody was happy living their lives without worry.
All these things eventually changed, and life sped up once I entered college. Everyday after class, I would walk over to the dining hall to buy a deli sandwich. On this particular day in the Spring, I spotted a crowd of nearly fifty students gathered close to Cater Lawn across from Foy Student Union. In the past, I had witnessed verbal clashes between the College Republicans and Democrats-- also throw in also the Gay and Lesbian Alliance for good measure. I had seen all of that before. It was all old news to me, and when I saw them arguing it reminded me of programs broadcasted on CNN. This crowd I approached had a single man atop a small brick wall speaking in a harsh voice. At the time, it felt like a guilty pleasure, and it was irresistible to join the commotion.
He called himself “Brother” Micah Armstrong. He dressed in long slacks that were held by suspenders, a long-sleeved dress shirt, and had a worn golf hat on top of his head. At his feet, a gallon jug of water, from which he would take a swig out of every few minutes. I found a friend of mine in the crowd of people, and we both listened closely to his words. He preached a scornful message that was filled with hatred and violence. He would curse the homosexuals, denounce the Jewish, and harass female students that he deemed whores. I thought he was gravely mistaken because the Christian God is a God of love and forgiveness, which was quite the opposite from what he was preaching. I also felt a certain respect for the man because he truly was doing what he felt God led him to do. There are times where I am too nervous to answer a question in class, and in front of me was Armstrong sharing his faith to a disapproving audience.
Throughout his message, I felt like he was telling us that there was absolutely no hope for us from God. Multiple times, he told us we were going to go to hell. It was frustrating because he was smearing Christianity. Inside, I felt a sort of resentment towards the man. I can’t say for sure, but I think it was because of his misinterpretation of the Bible. My emotions were completely divided, and because of this, it made me question if there was any connection between the conflicting feelings. It reminded me of a cartoon I once watched long ago as a child. The character had an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other telling him what choices to make. I certainly feel that way all of the time-- even when I am trying to decide whether or not to eat just one more cookie for lunch. Then it made me think that our emotions are conflicting all the time. It seemed that it is a constant struggle between the heart and the mind.
The crowd cheered, taunted, and laughed in bliss once Brother Micah started speaking about sexual sin. I have always heard how much my generation is obsessed with sex. Being in that crowd reminded me that it is mostly true. Everybody there, whether they were telling the truth or not, admitted in a humorous fashion that they had committed some form of sexual sin. Everybody there seemed to be proud of that fact. I can remember reading a book titled The Scarlet Letter back in high school. The entire book was devoted to a Puritan woman in the 1700s who lived in shame because of sexual sin. She was forced to wear a red “A” which stood for adultery. And then I thought about how moral values have changed over the course of time to present day. People that lived back then were shamed by these sins, and they were usually ostracized by society. I thought about this, and it seemed that while in the crowd, sexual sin is imperative to be “cool.” The old phrase “When in Rome” was dusted off after pondering about the subject.
I watched as he grew thirsty for water. He would take a moment, grab the jug, and take a huge gulp. A student in the crowd approached him, snatched the jug from his hands, and then poured the water onto the ground. Watching that water roll down the concrete made me wonder why this person would hold so much hate for Armstrong. It made me think about how far we will take things when somebody has a different opinion. Brother Micah never did anything to that student except offer his sermon. That man had wronged Brother Micah, but it was refreshing to see another student grab the jug and fill it with fresh water. The crowd had grown to over sixty people by now, and it was comforting knowing there was at least one person willing to have sympathy for him.
Then I felt guilty after watching the student refill his water jug. I think I felt that way because of my participation in the crowd. Moments later, another student stood on the wall next to him and flashed a nude magazine towards the crowd. He said he wanted to start his own church of pornography. Brother Micah did his best to ignore the man, all the while the crowd’s intensity grew. Things seemed to get worse for him once he started explaining how Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. went to hell. The crowd started to verbally abuse him more than ever at this claim. I thought it was ironic that King, who once preached peace, was now being used as fuel for hate.
The assumptions by Brother Micah about Dr. King only reinforced my idea that he was a false prophet. Any Christian would agree that God’s judgment is not something humans can pass. The students behind him started hurling rocks at him as he stood on the wall. One of the rocks struck him in the face as he turned around to talk with them.
If you believe in the Christian doctrine, you will also agree that no man is comparable to Jesus Christ. But watching Micah Armstrong made me realize that he wasn’t being treated any better than Jesus was by the Romans in the final hours of his life. It took me back thousands of years to the days of Rome. I felt like a horrible person. Perhaps I should have been dressed in Roman garments along with everybody else taunting Armstrong. Again, not to say that his suffering was exactly equal to Jesus’, but I think the analogy says a lot about our society.
There finally came a time where I could not stand it anymore. I had to leave the crowd because I didn’t want to continue to be apart of the travesty. There is a passage I learned long ago from the Bible in the chapter of John. Its simple meaning explains, “Be in the world, not of the world.” Although I was silent the whole time I was there, I felt torn. My mind wanted me to stay and witness the chaos outside, but my heart told me otherwise. Maybe I was curious, or maybe it was my human nature to want to ridicule another person for my own pleasure. After I purchased my sandwich at the dining hall, I could still see the circus going on outside. I hung my head, for I was shamed that I participated in the crowd. The most important lesson I learned that day reinforces that old passage in John. I learned that regardless of religious affiliation or opinion, we should be in the world, but not of the world.
The sweat on his face, the dissonance of his voice, and the message he spoke is still etched into my memory. His message, although deemed invalid by most, spoke volumes more than what he intended it to do. Two years ago, I began my freshman year at Auburn University. I chose to go there because I felt that I needed to explore the world outside of my hometown. I am from Trussville, Alabama, which is comparable to the town of Mayberry in The Andy Griffith Show. The community I grew up in was small and harmonious. Sometimes it felt like people felt safe there because there were no major controversies, no major events, and everybody was happy living their lives without worry.
All these things eventually changed, and life sped up once I entered college. Everyday after class, I would walk over to the dining hall to buy a deli sandwich. On this particular day in the Spring, I spotted a crowd of nearly fifty students gathered close to Cater Lawn across from Foy Student Union. In the past, I had witnessed verbal clashes between the College Republicans and Democrats-- also throw in also the Gay and Lesbian Alliance for good measure. I had seen all of that before. It was all old news to me, and when I saw them arguing it reminded me of programs broadcasted on CNN. This crowd I approached had a single man atop a small brick wall speaking in a harsh voice. At the time, it felt like a guilty pleasure, and it was irresistible to join the commotion.
He called himself “Brother” Micah Armstrong. He dressed in long slacks that were held by suspenders, a long-sleeved dress shirt, and had a worn golf hat on top of his head. At his feet, a gallon jug of water, from which he would take a swig out of every few minutes. I found a friend of mine in the crowd of people, and we both listened closely to his words. He preached a scornful message that was filled with hatred and violence. He would curse the homosexuals, denounce the Jewish, and harass female students that he deemed whores. I thought he was gravely mistaken because the Christian God is a God of love and forgiveness, which was quite the opposite from what he was preaching. I also felt a certain respect for the man because he truly was doing what he felt God led him to do. There are times where I am too nervous to answer a question in class, and in front of me was Armstrong sharing his faith to a disapproving audience.
Throughout his message, I felt like he was telling us that there was absolutely no hope for us from God. Multiple times, he told us we were going to go to hell. It was frustrating because he was smearing Christianity. Inside, I felt a sort of resentment towards the man. I can’t say for sure, but I think it was because of his misinterpretation of the Bible. My emotions were completely divided, and because of this, it made me question if there was any connection between the conflicting feelings. It reminded me of a cartoon I once watched long ago as a child. The character had an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other telling him what choices to make. I certainly feel that way all of the time-- even when I am trying to decide whether or not to eat just one more cookie for lunch. Then it made me think that our emotions are conflicting all the time. It seemed that it is a constant struggle between the heart and the mind.
The crowd cheered, taunted, and laughed in bliss once Brother Micah started speaking about sexual sin. I have always heard how much my generation is obsessed with sex. Being in that crowd reminded me that it is mostly true. Everybody there, whether they were telling the truth or not, admitted in a humorous fashion that they had committed some form of sexual sin. Everybody there seemed to be proud of that fact. I can remember reading a book titled The Scarlet Letter back in high school. The entire book was devoted to a Puritan woman in the 1700s who lived in shame because of sexual sin. She was forced to wear a red “A” which stood for adultery. And then I thought about how moral values have changed over the course of time to present day. People that lived back then were shamed by these sins, and they were usually ostracized by society. I thought about this, and it seemed that while in the crowd, sexual sin is imperative to be “cool.” The old phrase “When in Rome” was dusted off after pondering about the subject.
I watched as he grew thirsty for water. He would take a moment, grab the jug, and take a huge gulp. A student in the crowd approached him, snatched the jug from his hands, and then poured the water onto the ground. Watching that water roll down the concrete made me wonder why this person would hold so much hate for Armstrong. It made me think about how far we will take things when somebody has a different opinion. Brother Micah never did anything to that student except offer his sermon. That man had wronged Brother Micah, but it was refreshing to see another student grab the jug and fill it with fresh water. The crowd had grown to over sixty people by now, and it was comforting knowing there was at least one person willing to have sympathy for him.
Then I felt guilty after watching the student refill his water jug. I think I felt that way because of my participation in the crowd. Moments later, another student stood on the wall next to him and flashed a nude magazine towards the crowd. He said he wanted to start his own church of pornography. Brother Micah did his best to ignore the man, all the while the crowd’s intensity grew. Things seemed to get worse for him once he started explaining how Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. went to hell. The crowd started to verbally abuse him more than ever at this claim. I thought it was ironic that King, who once preached peace, was now being used as fuel for hate.
The assumptions by Brother Micah about Dr. King only reinforced my idea that he was a false prophet. Any Christian would agree that God’s judgment is not something humans can pass. The students behind him started hurling rocks at him as he stood on the wall. One of the rocks struck him in the face as he turned around to talk with them.
If you believe in the Christian doctrine, you will also agree that no man is comparable to Jesus Christ. But watching Micah Armstrong made me realize that he wasn’t being treated any better than Jesus was by the Romans in the final hours of his life. It took me back thousands of years to the days of Rome. I felt like a horrible person. Perhaps I should have been dressed in Roman garments along with everybody else taunting Armstrong. Again, not to say that his suffering was exactly equal to Jesus’, but I think the analogy says a lot about our society.
There finally came a time where I could not stand it anymore. I had to leave the crowd because I didn’t want to continue to be apart of the travesty. There is a passage I learned long ago from the Bible in the chapter of John. Its simple meaning explains, “Be in the world, not of the world.” Although I was silent the whole time I was there, I felt torn. My mind wanted me to stay and witness the chaos outside, but my heart told me otherwise. Maybe I was curious, or maybe it was my human nature to want to ridicule another person for my own pleasure. After I purchased my sandwich at the dining hall, I could still see the circus going on outside. I hung my head, for I was shamed that I participated in the crowd. The most important lesson I learned that day reinforces that old passage in John. I learned that regardless of religious affiliation or opinion, we should be in the world, but not of the world.
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