I am Auburn.
I am the 30-year old couple coming back to campus
for the first time with both little ones in tow. One wears her first
blue and orange cheerleader
outfit; the other wears #34 even though he is too young to understand why.
I am the 50-year old man who hoped no one saw tears in his eyes when
the eagle circled the field. I was too choked even to say 'War Eagle'.
For a moment, I felt foolish and then I didn't care. God, I love this
place.
I am the 60 year old woman meeting her freshman
granddaughter who is now the 3rd generation of AU students in our
family. Despite my age, I'd strap it on Saturday and hit someone if it
weren't for my gender and this blasted arthritis.
I am Auburn and
I have always believed I was different. You can see it when you look up
into the stands. My orange is not the same as Tennessee’s and my blue
is not that of Florida. But the differences go much deeper than my
colors. Read my creed. What other school has one? I genuinely believe in
these things. To be a real Auburn man or woman speaks of character, not
of geography. All are welcome to walk though my gates, not just the
wealthy or the elite.
Georgia and Alabama may have their nations,
but we have always been family. Make no mistake, we loathe defeat, but
even in defeat, we would rather be an Auburn Tiger than anything else.
We are family and you are the sons of Heisman, the sons of Jordan and
Dye. You come from a long line of brothers whose names include Burkett,
Sidle, Owens, Sullivan, Beasley, Jackson and Rocker. It is a great
heritage.
So this Saturday, when the warm ups are over and the
prayers and amen spoken, when you hear my thunder growing in the stands
above you, when you stand in the tunnel and the smoke begins to form,
listen for my voice when you run onto my field. Behind the frenzy of the
shakers and deafening roar, I will tell you something in a whisper you
may miss. I will be telling you that you are my sons and I am proud of
you for the way you wear the burnt orange and navy blue. I am telling
you that you are my sons and I love you.
Auburn is so much more
than a city or a school or a team or a degree. It is something that,
once you have experienced it, will live inside of you forever and become
a part of what makes up who you are...
It is driving into town
on a game day. You may have come from hundreds of miles away and as you
get closer and closer to the city limits, you feel it rising inside of
you. Other cars on the highway proudly display their orange and blue
flags, magnets or car tags, and you honk and wave at them, because, for
that one day, you are all on the same team.
It is the smell in
the air and the ritualistic act of tailgating...catching up with old
friends, making new ones, and invitations from perfect strangers to try
their ribs or watch their satellite TV showing all of the day's
important match-ups...of course, all being secondary to the one that
will occur in the great cathedral of Jordan-Hare later that day.
It is the Tiger Walk...where you might just see 300 pound men overcome
with emotion and weeping with pride because you have come there to cheer
them on. As they walk by, you might exchange a glance with one or two
of them and you can see it in their eyes...it is going to be their day.
It is the students...dressed in their best, because going to an Auburn
game is like going to church for Auburn people....you show the same
respect as you would if you were in God's house. Those students remind
you of the days when you were walking in their shoes and Auburn was your
home...but then you realize, in many ways, it is still and always will
be HOME.
It is that lump that rises in your throat when the band
plays the Alma Mater as the eagle is soaring over your head during
pregame.
It is walking around on a "foreign" and sometimes
hostile campus. You are easily identified (Auburn people always are) and
the enemy jeers and shouts things at you to mask their feelings of
intimidation. But just then, you happen upon a friend you have never met
before. You know they are your friend by the colors they wear or the
shaker in their hand. You exchange a "War Eagle" and a confident grin
because he/she knows what you know.
It is when your heart leaps
with every touchdown, field goal, sack, and interception...because those
are our boys. And win or lose, they will always have our undying
support. After all, it is those boys that you are really there for, and
not a coach or a logo or a trustee or a president.
It is the
complete and utter exhilaration of walking away victorious over a worthy
opponent...that feeling of pride and accomplishment as if it were your
own feet that had crossed the goal line scoring the last points
yourself...that feeling of wanting to scream War Eagle" at the top of
your lungs and hug complete strangers...and then there is the ultimate
high of defeating your most hated foes from across the state.
No words can describe what this feels like, but you know because you have experienced it.
It is the sheer agony of defeat as the last minutes tick off the clock
and you realize that all hope of a victory is gone. You feel like crying
and maybe you do...then you hear the faint sounds of a cheer that grows
louder and louder...."ITS GREAT TO BE AN AUBURN TIGER."
It is
knowing that year after year, no matter how things change in our hectic
lives, you can always come back to "the Loveliest Village on the
Plains"...the place where you came from...your home. It will probably
look a little different and there will be new names on the backs of the
jerseys, but deep down, no matter what, it is still the same.You still
love it as much as you always have because Auburn is as much a part of
you as your arms, legs and the orange and blue blood that runs through
your veins.
And, finally, it is the feeling you have right now as
you read these lines....the anticipation inside of you because you know
it's almost time....It's about to start all over again...but then it
really never goes away, does it?
--
Robert L. Gillette, DVM, MSE