"College Move-In" or "How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Horde"

It's August. August has many meaning here:
1. It's hot. Really, really hot.
2. Your utility bill is really high (if you're unsure why, see 1).
3. Get in your last minute get-aways because
4. School is starting.

That's right, next week the kids go back to school. That's not so bad. It's the natural order of things.  But one of the things we deal with here and maybe you don't where you live is this: College Move-in.  They come in droves, like locusts.  The first few have already started trickling in.  They come from all over and they all drive at different speeds.  Our town doubles or triples its population (depending on whether or not you count the parents and siblings).  The roads grind to a halt and a half mile trip will be a half hour trip.  Road crews are literally patching all road projects and reinforcing the bordering intersections in the next two weeks in preparation.  If you forget and accidentally go to the get groceries or normal everyday items at any store that weekend, you will pay for it for several hours.

I've begun to make a checklist of things we need to have done before move in weekend so that we can go into bunker mode until it blows over and the parents all go home.  As I look over my list I wander, How is this different from how I would prepare for a zombie apocalypse? I mean it, look through this list.

If it were zombies I would add "__Get some ammunition and guns." before "__Go home and lock the door." That's really the only difference.  Here's my self portrait at ideal preparedness based on things I have at my house:

Hmmm....maybe that reveals a little too much about me.


Of course all the selfish whining aside, I do love the college kids coming back. There are lots of small things about living near the University that irritate me, but this town wouldn't be the same without them. I miss seeing the goofiness. I miss going to football games and stuff with them. Where else can a restaurant stay in business that only sells chicken fingers? Where can you have six frozen yogurt places within a quarter of a square mile?


View Fro-Yo in a larger map

And that doesn't include three others, outside that area but probably within ten minutes drive from any of those. Not to mention coffee shops. You can't throw a rock without hitting a coffee shop in this town. It's awesome.  I give this place another year before I can pretty much have wi-fi anywhere. All because of college kids.

But most importantly I miss seeing them at church. I miss seeing their enthusiasm with knowing God more and serving in ministries.  I miss seeing how they appreciate a home-cooked meal.  If you have college kids in your town, love on them. I love what our church and several others do on move in weekend.  We help move them into the dorms.  We haul enormous TVs and pink plushy bean bag chairs up four flights of stairs because we want them to know that Jesus loves them, so we love them.

Push through move-in and love them.  I was one once, and trust me, they need it.  Sometimes they need a meal, sometimes a couch or bed to crash on. Sometimes they need a knock upside the head because you love em too much to let them do something dumb. However it plays out, love them.