Wednesday, June 25, 2008

What a difference a snail makes.


One time a snail changed my life.

I was born in California and lived there for 10 years. As a senior in high school I visited colleges that I was interested in or had applied to, and one of those was Pomona College in Claremont, California. My mom attended college there and we visited as a family when I was a pre-teen or some other obnoxious age. At that time I decided I didn't want to go there because it was too small. (Not that I had any pressure to go there.)

Years later I ended up applying and being accepted so I went to visit again. I immediately felt comfortable on campus and was so excited about the possibility of returning to California to live. There is something about the smell of it (eucalyptus) and the dry air that are very nostalgic for me. After visiting some rogue building and hearing a spiel about Pomona College we went outside to walk to the dining hall for lunch. There meandered a wee snail across the sidewalk.

I hadn't seen a snail in years - I guess there aren't snails in Iowa, which can't be true, but that's how I remember feeling. I pretty much decided right then that I would attend Pomona College in Claremont California for my undergraduate degree. Weird, huh?

A snail. What a seemingly insignificant creature with a big influence!

Chirp! (The sound snails make in Southern California.)

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