The telltale odor of apprehension, wonder and exuberant hope permeated Fort Lewis College on Friday as newly minted freshmen bounded into unfamiliar buildings, mustered the courage to socialize and set their minds to the initially baffling task of living life as an adult.
Parents, meanwhile, followed their children like proud veteran shadows, aware they must depart with childhood’s impending sunset.
Outside Jones Hall around 10 a.m., one mother hugged her daughter, tears streaming down her cheeks, just as they were about to walk into an orientation class.
“Mom, stop, you haven’t even left yet,” the daughter said, though she hugged her mom back.
Like FLC’s new students, parents generally bore their emotions – however conflicted – with resignation and grace.
Incoming freshman Jackson Roberts, of Louisville, was walking with his parents, Patti and Casey, into Jones Hall.
He said he moved in Thursday, and when it came to starting college, he was neither too nervous nor too excited.
“He’s gonna be absolutely fine,” said his mother, Patti. She said she remembered her first day of college, which concluded with her eating dinner by herself, and wondering, “What do I do now?”
“I just hope he gets engaged,” she said. Jackson’s father, Casey, agreed acclamation was the foremost hurdle.
Jackson said he had formed a positive first impression of his classmates, calling them “pretty cool.”
Kelsey Henry, a new FLC student transferring into her sophomore year from Eastern New Mexico University, was walking past the Student Union with her childhood friend and fellow sophomore Tisheena Loley, who had transferred from Central New Mexico Community College in Albuquerque.
She said her parents were in Durango, delighted that their daughter is starting a new school year much closer to home in Crownpoint, N.M. – only a two-hour drive from FLC.
“I didn’t like Eastern. It’s complicated when it’s a six-hour drive to go home. I hope I have more fun this year. I’m excited to ski,” she said.
She said she couldn’t wait to finish orientation and “hopefully hang out with new friends later on.”
Inside the Student Union’s café, proud FLC parents Mike and Karen Jacobsen, of Boulder, were enjoying sweet respite from the rigors of move-in weekend.
Karen said she felt some anxiety about how their son, Noah, would fare in his first months away from home. But she recalled her own profound anxieties when she first attended college, and said, “It didn’t last very long.”
Mike said, so far, they thought FLC was “fabulous,” except for a regrettable lack of signage.
He said they didn’t plan on obsessively checking in with Noah.
“That’s the problem with the whole world today,” he said. “They’re supposed to go to college, make decisions and make mistakes at this age. Instead, the first thing they do, they call mom.”
Karen quickly spoke up: “At the same time, they’re just learning to navigate the world by themselves.”
Karen said she would let Noah take the lead when it came to communication, but that she would definitely call him “if we haven’t heard in a few weeks. It’s much easier in today’s environment to send a quick text.”
“He’s really got his act together – as much as an 18-year-old can have their act together,” said Karen, smiling.
Their advice to Noah was “don’t do anything stupid.”
Doug Spainhower, of Summit County, said his freshman son, Sean, was taking to college like a duck to water.
“I’m glad he didn’t go to CSU,” he said. “He wants to be in outdoor adventure education. And he hasn’t spent six nights in his bed since he graduated. He’s really psyched, but he’s going to have to get the hang of sleeping in a dorm room.”
He whipped the camera off his neck and showed pictures of Sean participating in a freshman bonding activity Thursday night in Jones Hall. They showed Sean standing tall as he walked on webbed nylon straps – which seemed more precarious than a tightrope – held up by 20 other freshmen.
“He was the first to put his hand up for that – not surprising. He’s already made about 10 friends, of course, seven of them are girls.”
Spainhower said his partner, Lisa, was “freaking out” about Sean’s departure from home, while he was relatively calm about retuning to an empty nest.
“My only worry is: Will he succeed in this four-year adventure? I didn’t go to college, but I think this is great,” he said. “The only thing you want for your kids is to see them succeed.”
cmcallister@durangoherald.com
