It’s rare that I post personal thoughts and feelings on this blog, but with everything that has happened at Tech, and seeing how it has affected all of our friends and family and even us, I find myself falling to the idea of using our blog as a personal forum.

I’ve been trying to figure out why what happened at Tech has affected me deeply, more than I thought it would. When I saw the above drawing today, it finally clicked into place. As you may or may not know, g14 started at James Madison University, where I went to school. One of the things that I really loved about JMU was the sense of community and that it really did seem like a big family. One of my favorite things about Madison was that we were always very laid back, I don’t remember us really having rivalries the way some schools in the same state do. In fact, because Madison was always really just a jump away from Tech, Radford, and UVA, it felt like that sense of family and community extended to include those schools too. We always just all seemed to be cool with each other, at most just busting each other’s chops like friends do.

And to me, that’s why it hits so hard. Because even though it’s Tech that was hurt, it’s the whole family that’s grieving. I know that if this had happened at UVA or JMU, Tech would be there to grieve with us and give their support. I don’t know why, but it’s always felt to me that VA schools, especially the ones down in that area, stick together close. And even if that notion is just in my head, it’s something that I’m proud to know and be a part of.

Matthew