Black Friday

Today is a day of strength, courage, and endurance.  I however have none of those qualities today, at least for the shopping aspect of Black Friday.

But Black Friday is something completely different for me.  Today is the eve of all eves! The night before the Iron Bowl.  This is not just any Iron Bowl.  It is my last Iron Bowl as a student.  Well, it is my last football game as a student.  Oh how these four years have flown by.  Saturday's in Auburn, in the fall, during college, will forever have a place in my heart.

I will always remember the four Iron Bowl's I had the pleasure to experience during college.  My first Iron Bowl was with my dear friend Kristen in Tuscaloosa.  The weekend was fun but we lost that year and I spent my Saturday evening surrounded by Alabama fans celebrating a year of bragging rights.

The next Iron Bowl was finally in God's Country.  This had to be my favorite Iron Bowl of the four.  For some reason, the state thought the Iron Bowl would be best played on the Friday after Thanksgiving.  So my family and our close family friends had our Thanksgiving meal at the tailgate spot.  That Friday, Auburn played their hearts out and that was the first time I cried about an Auburn loss.  However, that Friday night was also the first night I hung out with Brenden and his friends and got to met his Dad and two younger brothers.  This was an Iron Bowl to remember, even if we did lose.

The next Iron Bowl was back in Tuscaloosa and again on Friday.  This year my family spent Thanksgiving at my Great Aunt Lou's farm in Birmingham and woke up bright and early that next day to drive the rest of the way to Tuscaloosa.  The game was cold and wet and Brenden and I sat at the very top on the last row in the end zone with Alabama fans surrounding us.  We only stayed until half-time but man I wish I would have stayed to see that comeback and yell War Eagle (just once) in Bryant Denny Stadium.

This year, I get to celebrate the Iron Bowl on Auburn's turf with the people I love, in the town that I cannot get enough of.  This place means so much to me.  It has given me the strength to know I can do anything I set my mind to, the courage to try new things in life, and the endurance to know that no matter what comes my way I will not give up.  I am so excited to go to my last student football game in Auburn AND it's the Iron Bowl.  This will be a day I will never forget.  I will probably cry (win or lose) but it will be happy tears either way.  Because being in Jordan Hare Stadium was the first time I felt like I was apart of the Auburn Family.  I will always be apart of this great big family but I will never have the same experiences like I have had as an Auburn student in the student section during an Auburn football game!

WAR EAGLE!

-Kayla