I
cannot believe my time at Oxford University is over. To say it was an amazing
summer would be a massive understatement, to a similar degree as saying Harry
Potter is “just okay”. But seriously. What a few months. I am not going to lie,
there were points when I was ready to come home. It was hard; being thrown
straight into the scholar’s lions den for a few months with no friends
(initially). I missed Tex-Mex, my close-knit family, my encouraging
friendships, and I especially missed baseball, beds with sheets, and air
conditioning. And yet, here I am with all of that at my fingertips and I’m
missing Costa Coffee, The Four Candles Pub, my crazy flatmates, the hilarious
elitist “shushers” in the library (who thought they had the God given right to
tell me to be quiet) and even the swarming mobs of Asian teenage tourists who
took over the city mid-July. I miss Oxford. I feel like I am homesick…for
England. I just love that country.
My
last few weeks in Oxford wrapped up in rather comical ways. Let me pull out
possibly the most ridiculous story of my trip. About two weeks before I came
home, I was on a jog on the beautiful cobblestone sidewalks surrounding the
Radcliffe Camera (one of the main libraries on campus). A man who I shall refer
to as “Mr. Absent Minded Tourist” was riding in the bike lane on the adjacent
paved road…and then clipped the curb while passing me. Mr. Absent Minded
Tourist crashes. Mr. Absent Minded Tourist crashes INTO ME. So here I am,
completely confused as to how and why the heck I am sprawled out on the
sidewalk, while Mr. Absent Minded Tourist is happily chuckling at his
miraculous safety after such an event. But the only reason Mr. Absent
Minded Tourist is unhurt
is because I quite literally broke his fall. THIS GUY IS LAUGHING WHILE I AM
SANDWICHED BETWEEN HIM AND THE COBBLESTONES. Upon finally realizing
this, Mr. Absent Minded Tourist gets off of me and says maybe two words in
what I think was Mandarin, then says “Sorry! Sorry!” and casually gets back on
his bike and rides away. He just leaves me, disoriented and confused about what
in the world just happened in the past 15 seconds of my life. He was completely
ungrateful for my award-winning performance as a human cushion for him.
Upon
going to the doctor right when I got back to America, I found that Mr.
Absent Minded Tourist gave me a little souvenir from the experience too: a
bunch of messed up ligaments and bone chips in my ankle. I have been forced to
wear a walking ankle boot since I got to the U.S. and will have to start
physical therapy soon. Seriously, WHO DOES THIS HAPPEN TO?! I am an accident
magnet. But as guess as far as breaking an ankle goes, it could have happened
in a less beautiful place. Rad Cam is just stunning. God, I miss it.
After brutal final exam
timed writing (which I still haven’t received my final mark…), a handful of sad
goodbyes in my flat’s basement at 3:00am and a couple more right before my
flight, I was homebound. It is a bit weird being back. My second day home I had
a mini panic attack because I thought I was driving on the wrong side of the
road. I wasn’t, but being on the right-hand side of the road just seems strange.
I finished my first week of classes at The U of A and it is so weird being in
an actual class, not just one on one appointments with the professor. Also, of
course no offense to Arkansas, but Oxford Uni’s campus blows ours out of the
water. Walking to class seems kind of dull after being spoiled at the most
beautiful campus in the world. And I do miss being only a bus ride away from my
favorite city of all- London.
I grew so much this
summer in many different ways. I am still my silly and goofy self, but I feel
like I matured a lot these past few months. Through the combination of months
away from home, the insanely intense academics, the forging of new friendships
amongst all the madness, I came back to The States different than I was when I
left. Dozens of my American friends have mentioned it already. But I think it
is a good thing. I discovered a lot of questions I had never considered about
my relationships, my goals and priorities, my beliefs. And while the vast
majority still don’t have definitive answers yet, I am looking forward to
finding them. My adventures in Oxford may have ended, but there are so many to
come.
To England, to The
University of Oxford, to my fellow Summer Scholars: Thanks for an incredible,
unforgettable summer.
See you next summer
(hopefully), England.
--
Elizabeth Walsh Pittman
Walton Honors Business Economics
Fulbright Honors English Literature
