By Jordan Freisleben
As a junior in high school, there still remains a lot of mystery behind the college experience. From gaining the “Freshman 15” to crazy acts of rebellion after leaving home, as you could imagine, I had no idea on what to expect when visiting my older sister, Shayna, at college for the first time. Shayna just started her freshman year at Emory University, her campus being about a 45-minute drive from Atlanta.
Regarding the South, I actually agree with the stereotype about hospitality. It’s true—everyone is so friendly and seems genuinely interested in your life story within minutes of meeting you. The hospitality extends to almost all of the South’s aspects, even the weather: the humidity is the first thing to greet you when you get off the plane.
Truth be told, I was completely unsure of how the South would have affected my cosmopolitan, L.A. —bred sister. After a month and a half, I was expecting to see her transformed into Scarlett O’Hara with a Republican mentality (even though she’s a true West Wing devotee). However, I was most apprehensive about the fact that her roommate and Omega Delta sorority sisters (although technically called a “Social Club”) would have replaced her actual sister.
Based on my first interactions with Shayna in Georgia, she definitely seemed to have changed. When she saw me in the hallway of her dorm she did something she never had before: she sprinted down the hall to squeeze me into a big hug and a kiss. Later when she came back to Atlanta with the family to stay for the weekend, she made listening about my seemingly mundane life a priority. She sat down on the hotel bed and actually wanted to know about my classes, my friends and how I’m handling junior year. She listened intently, nodding and focusing on what I had to say without distractedly texting her friends or watching TV.
It seemed ironic to me how such a small liberal arts campus made my sister grow so much in only six weeks. I wasn’t sure if Shayna had matured, or as the adage goes, you can never recognize something when it’s right in front of you.
The most interesting part of seeing her was probably hearing about the description of her classes. I’m still not completely familiar with the concept of choosing exactly the courses that you want. I still remain fascinated by the classes she’s taking—they seem so scholarly and advanced to me. She went on describing the Arabic alphabet, teaching me various phrases that she’s learned and how her professor is teaching the class how to pick up miscellaneous words within context.
At the first Family Visiting Day, Shayna introduced me to her advisor/Political Science professor who gave me a rough explanation of the course. Right now they’re reading Plato and will later read the works of other philosophers. She explained the syllabi and material for Sociology and Geology (which she claims is a breeze after Wendy Van Norden’s class in the 10th grade).
In all of her years at home, she never seemed this enthused about her courses. It could be because we didn’t talk that much or because she was never plunged into them the way she is now. I like the fact that her academics light her up, that’s what the college experience should be about and she should enjoy every minute of it.
It always amazed me how my older sister has had such a knack for adapting to various environments and situations – I’ve lived in Encino my entire life and am not familiar with much beyond a 10 block radius. After a few weeks she not only knows Oxford, (where her campus is), but can navigate the city of Atlanta with practically her eyes closed. In the car on our way to dinner, she’s telling me and my parents all that she’s done and seen whether it was seeing Sean Kingston perform on campus, or finding the nearest teppanyaki restaurant to go to with her friends.
She then listed off what her preferred areas of Atlanta.
“Virginia Highlands is really nice, Mom. I found this great bakery/café that I went to with [my roommate] a couple of weeks ago,” she said.
She was even referencing parts of Atlanta as if she had lived there for years.
“Little Five Points is kinda like Melrose – it’s cute, but has an eclectic flair to it.”
She walked us around her small campus with an air of confidence and a certain comfort level that she developed in such a short time. Everyone seemed to know her – from the Student Activity Committee, her social club, or the Chorale. One thing hadn’t changed; Shayna still has the same presence about her that I had known for my entire life.
For someone who I always labeled a “big city kind of girl,” Shayna definitely seemed to love the small, cozy environment of her school. At dinner, she was even extolling the benefits of a small college in trying to persuade me in where I’ll eventually apply.
It’s funny – I was looking forward to my sister leaving for school: less petty fights, no more antagonism and I get the attention of being an only child. However, after a few weeks, these sentiments began to wear off. With Shayna rejoining the “family dinners” on our trip to Atlanta this past weekend, I liked feeling like the little sister again. I didn’t have to worry about school or my parents’ questions about college/SATs etc. I loved being able to sit back and listen to my sister talk about her interesting life, realizing how I’ve really missed her witty commentary.
I found it really strange to see Shayna so happy and comfortable in an environment that remains so unfamiliar and far from me. This trip served as an eye-opening opportunity for me – I saw that stepping outside one’s comfort zone is when maturity and ‘knowing thyself’ really take effect.
Although I ended this trip kind of sad and missing my big sister, when we dropped her off back at campus, she was starting to get annoyed with her family and wanted us to go already.
“Jordie, why are you getting sad? I’m gonna see you soon,” she said toughly and a little aggravated.
After that, I smiled knowing that I still could get the honest, terse strength that my sister had always given me, even now from 3,000 miles away.