The game is tied at 64. Brooks drives the ball in with just seconds left. He lays the ball up, it starts to roll out, and with just tenths of a second left the ball is tipped in by Hairston. Salukis win! What better way to celebrate what ESPN called “the finish of the day” by rushing the court. There is honestly no way to describe the feeling I felt as I join the student body on the court celebrating. And as I rushed home afterwards and turned on ESPN to watch the highlights it finally hit me; I have school spirit. I couldn’t believe it, me of all people, wanting my school to win.

I know what you are thinking; I should want my school to win every game; that I should care. Well, it wasn’t always this way. You see, a long time ago in a town about five hours away, I was a high school student. Not just any ordinary student either, I was one of those who roamed the hallways hating my school with every breath in my body. This hatred became so bad that I wanted my school to lose every game that it played. From football to bowling, if my school lost, I was happy.

Now I really don’t know why I felt this way. I was somewhat active during my four years in high school. I was in most of the plays, I played the alto sax for two years in the school band, I received decent grades, and I was even on the tennis team. Now here comes the question I know you are all asking yourselves, how can I want my school to lose if I was in a sport? The answer to that is simple; my team could’ve lost, but I could have won. It makes sense when you think about it, tennis is an individual sport where the only person you are counting on to win your match is yourself (or your partner if you played doubles).

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So why the sudden change of heart? I think most of it has to do with growing up. It’s been about four years since I’ve been in high school and a part of me still loathes that school. But I didn’t have fun there either, and now that I look back on it, I find that it is my fault for not having a good time and no one else’s. You see I came into high school thinking I wasn’t going to enjoy myself at all. The longer I attended, the more I thought I was going to have a horrible time. It was like a quicksand effect, my negative thoughts kept sinking me into a pit of hatred. By the time I realized this, high school was long gone, never to be had again. All the good times I could have had were wasted moping around the hallways. I thought I could have never redeemed myself from such a selfish act.

Then came the fall of 2002, I come to SIU after finally transferring from Joliet Junior College. This time around I knew that if I came into college with the same attitude I went into high school with, I would have the same miserable time. So I came down to Carbondale excited about school, excited about meeting new people and wanting to make up for my lack of school spirit I had. So I started studying more, already gaining grades that exceed the ones I received in high school. I started cheering on our school’s football team, excited when they won, heart broken when they lost. I’ve been going to all the basketball games, almost always sitting in the front row, cheering our team onto victory. And I couldn’t be happier. With a new outlook on life, I not only became a better student and friend, but I also gained pride in my school. With high school gone, I look forward to my remaining years at SIU. Not only as a student, but also as a student who has finally found his school spirit.

The Wild Kard appears every other Thursday. Brian is a junior in cinema and photography. His views do not necessarily reflect those of the Daily Egyptain.