Life, Love and Everything In Between

Earlier this week, I made the trip across the river and down the highway to my hometown of Ironton, Ohio.
For those who do not know, Ironton is a small city about 30 minutes west of Huntington, wedged in between a series of hills and the Ohio River, with a population hovering around 9,000.
The reason for my visit was that I was chasing down an interview at my old high school with the head varsity basketball coach for an advance story on the prospects of the upcoming season.
Upon arrival at the school, entering and making my way to the gymnasium, a flood of memories started swirling in my head.
Then, as my interview concluded, the team started warming up and getting ready to start, I hung around for a few minutes to take some pictures and catch up with a few people.  I actually played with some of the guys who are seniors now.
And then, as I stand there and watch, it hit me.  I realized that I really do not miss this at all.
Don't take it the wrong way. I loved it when I played high school basketball, emphasis on the word "played."
If all there was to it were the regular season games, it would be some of the best times of a young man's life.
But all the wind sprints, suicides, monotonous ball handling and lay-up drills, early morning practices, boring and uninspiring speeches by coaches and long bus rides make this former player look back with appreciation but mixed emotions.
That doesn't go to say I would change or do anything differently.  I am just on terms with its place in the past.
This also makes me think back to my first semester at college.  It was originally love at first sight. 
Everything about being a college student seemed to be so much better than that of high school, and trust me, it is.  That feeling has not changed.
But of course, after a while, the new and exciting feeling became more relaxed.  And now, it's to the point where my relationship with college is very love/hate.
This may be a bit of an exaggeration, but there are times when it feels like there is not much else to be lived for, like these are some of the best experiences one could ever have.
Then again, on the flip side, there are those moments, when school is the most pressing thing on the agenda and you feel like screaming if you hear the words "Marshall University" just one more time.
I recently had a conversation where a friend commented jokingly that people who feel like college was the best time of their life probably chose the wrong career path.
While I do feel that college is something that everyone should get a chance to experience, I also kind of agree, in the sense that there has to be more to life than just this.  And I believe that there is.  What exactly it is, I don't know.
But whatever it may be, I just hope one day to be able to find it.