The month of October is special to alumni, faculty, and staff of Nort Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. 

It is usually the month that homecoming takes places. But for me, the month holds a day that is more sentimental than homecoming. It is my birthday month.

Today, Oct. 22, I turned 21-years-old. While others would have taken this opportunity to “turn up,” by celebrating their birthday and homecoming simultaneously, I chose to take a different route, literally. Instead of spending the week in Greensboro with my Aggie family, I traveled to Barcelona and Paris.

When I first began telling others about my plans, I received a similar response from almost everyone that I spoke with. I heard things like “why in the world would you leave for homecoming?” “Your 21st birthday is during GHOE and you’re leaving? That’s crazy” and my all time favorite, “you’re leaving for homecoming? You’re not a real Aggie!”

Let me get this straight, because I am leaving for homecoming instead of staying, that somehow questions the love and pride that I have for my university? My birthday just so happens to fall on the week that homecoming takes place. With that being said, I will celebrate my birthday however I choose, even if that means missing homecoming.

I love my school. But honestly, celebrating my birthday during homecoming was the farthest thing from my mind. Between the crimes, cell phone service shutting down, and people doing their most foolish stunts, I knew that being in Greensboro during homecoming this year was something that I did not want to do.

The festivities really do not excite me anymore. I am not downplaying our illustrious university at all. But, I am at a point in my life where I would rather travel than party.

I don’t see anything wrong with having fun a little fun every now and again, or “turning up” in honor of homecoming. However, there is more to life than that. Partying is not what life is all about. So yes, I would rather spend my birthday traveling to Europe than “turning up.”

The recent death of an N.C. A&T student, Dorian Edwards sheds light on the fact that violence and crime is becoming the norm for our university’s annual week of celebration. Since when did a time of unity and reunion turn into a time for innocent students to lose their lives? 

As I travel to Barcelona and Spain, my prayers are with all of those attending the homecoming festivities. I pray that no lives are lost during this time of celebration and that we remember the reason that we are celebrating. 

Homecoming should be a time for alumni to return and celebrate the good times that they had on our campus, as well as for current students to make memories. Please Aggies, have a fun but safe homecoming week. 

 -Email Laci at [email protected] and follow her on twitter @laci_ollison

• Laci Ollison Word Editor