The University

On Saturday, I accompanied my boyfriend to The University of Virginia for their homecoming game. While, unfortunately, they lost the game, the experience was amazing.

There is always something so insightful about seeing where a person grew up, meeting their family or participating in one of their traditions. Sharing that experience first-hand allows you to connect on a whole new level. Every story and memory that person has shared with you suddenly has a deeper meaning because you can picture the events more clearly.

The college I attended wasn’t particularly steeped in tradition. I attended only two football games during the four years I was there, never joined a sorority and lived off campus for two years. The extra-curricular activities that I was involved with connected me more to students at other universities than to students at my own. I spent about two years interning almost full-time. I was so focused on what I was going to do after college that I never experienced college.

My boyfriend, on the other hand, relished college. He learned everything he could about everything. He joined a fraternity, went to parties, attended football games and embraced all of the UVA traditions.

Needless to say, Van had tried to prepare my for my first UVA experience. He explained that girls wore sundresses to the game and how it was tradition for the guys to wear jackets and ties. He described the University in detail, the history and shared a few stories. I thought that I was pretty prepared.

Then I took about three steps onto the Lawn and there they were, girls in sundresses and guys with ties, all with mixed drinks in-hand. I couldn’t help, but burst into uncontrollable laughter. I have never seen such a thing in my entire life. I felt like I had mistakenly ended up at the Kentucky derby instead of a football game.

So that was what Van was used to. It was at that second that our differences became almost sobering. I couldn’t help wondering how I fit into his world. What caused him to give up the cute blonde in a sundress with a Southern accent for a sweatshirt wearing Yankee?

I have come to realize that in the same way I have traded in my vision of Prince Charming for a republican (gasp), good-ole-boy from Virginia. While the whole experience at UVA brought to life so many of our differences, it made me appreciate the fact that we love each other for who we are not because we meet some predetermined idea of the perfect partner should be.