Fern Young Hall

Writing this post may make has made me a little nostalgic.  It may make my sisters and some of my friends feel the same way.  Years ago, my older sister, Meg, was the first of us to attend Snow College.  Its a junior college in the middle of the state in a very small town.  Everyone knew everyone.  Your chem teacher was also your bishop.  It was far enough away from home that you could feel like you were growing up and being independent, yet it was close enough to home that you could come for a weekend and do your laundry.  When Meg went down there, she lived in Fern Young Hall.  This was on campus dorm housing (as most places were, even if you lived "off campus" you were close enough to still be on campus when you crossed the street.)  I was the next to attend Snow and live in Fern Young.  Then finally Emi completed the trio of sisters to attend and live in the same dorm.  It was set up as a small apartment with bad couches, outdated appliances, mattresses covered in plastic that made your sheets slip off and we loved every minute of it.  I have so many memories of being down there with Meg ( I felt SO old when she let me come down to stay for a night), being down there myself and meeting Steph Judd (now Olsen), who lived across the hall, on our first day of classes.  We had "Fitness for Death" at 7:30 a.m.  I ended up living with her for another roughly 8 years.  Then it was Emi's time.  Fern Young has a long history with my family.

One of my dear friends, Loren, still lives down in San Pete county and we keep in touch, mostly through FB these days.  He just posted this picture earlier today.  Fern Young and a little piece of Snow College history is being torn down.  Demolished and lying in rubble as I write this.  If I'm being honest, I shed a few tears.

I spent a lot of good time in that place.  My bedroom was actually right where the tractor/backhoe machine thing is parked.  I met many good people down there and some of my dearest friends- Loren, Steph, Amy, Ryan.  I got locked out.  I played practical jokes and had them played back.  I sang BIG SPENDER at the top of my lungs more than once while a feather boa was draped across my shoulders.  I cooked my first turkey in Steph's apartment.  I saw my first dead bunny on a window ledge, left compliments of the "local" boys who went bunny bashing at night.  I spent my first weekend entirely alone in a place I called home because all my roommates were gone.  I learned to shower when there were people on the other side of the curtain getting ready.  I figured out how to ration toilet paper because it wasn't my turn to buy it that week.  I forgot how to lock my front door because there wasn't any reason to.  I watched the running of the sheep every spring and fall right from my front window.  I discovered the best place to get some sun was the front porch. 

I learned so many important life lessons just from being within those walls, it really makes me feel like a little bit of my life is going with it.  As you can see, the memories are numerous.  The experiences are priceless.  Even now, every time I drive down I-15 and see the turn off, my heart wants to head over, through all the little places that lead to my first home away from home.  I've been back a few times but once Charlie's Chapel was gone, I didn't want to go back. Charlie's was one of two fast food places in town.  Todd's dad owned it and that's where Loren and I would go to meet with Todd and Dave to discuss life and drink $.49- 32 oz Dr. Pepper's.  I was the only girl allowed haha The boys called it their "religion" class.

I loved my little home.  May it rest in peace.