By Adam Gorski, Sports Layout Editor
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been a perfectionist. Believe me, I don’t like it either, but it’s just how I tend to be whenever I’m writing or deciding something or doing whatever other things require the utmost astuteness. So when it came to picking a college, I truly had no idea about anything beyond that I knew I liked to write.
I thought Syracuse University was going to be my spot before I visited and realized, well, it was not. Then maybe St. Bonaventure — yeah, not at all. But then I came to Canisius, and I vividly remember having that “I think I belong here” sensation while walking around Lyons Hall, and things escalated from there.
I’ve lived in Western New York and gone to small schools my entire life, from elementary to middle school to high school, so stepping foot on campus as a freshman and knowing the Canisius community was small gave me a sense of comfort; that was, until I stepped into my first lecture hall and my introverted self started realizing that this is college and a brand-new, daunting environment.
But I’ll never forget the moment that put me at ease.
I had English 101 with Dr. Graham Stowe, who, if you have not had a class with or had the pleasure of meeting him, you’re missing out. I entered the classroom and sat near a good friend of mine from high school as we waited for the mystery professor who we only knew by name to enter the room.
Dr. Stowe walked in, broke the silence with a greeting and went to pull down the projection screen — only for it to end in a comical mishap that made the entire room of nervous freshmen, and him, laugh. From there, things got easier. That class was what helped ease my tension and gave me something to look forward to in my first semester, and I regret not taking another of his classes.
Speaking of regrets, I think I could sum up the entirety of my freshman year as one big regret. As a commuter with a roughly half-hour drive to campus my entire four years I’ve attended Canisius, during my first two semesters, my ideology was “drive to campus, go to class, drive home” and nothing more.
I didn’t get involved and hardly talked to anybody. So, if any commuter or undergrad in general is reading this and in the same boat I was, I urge you: join a club, go to sporting events, go to student-run events. I know it’s cliché, but your college years will only be what you make of it.
So, after my unmemorable freshman year, I joined The Griffin as a sophomore doing layout for the Sports section (with no Adobe Suite experience whatsoever, might I add) and ended up finding it to be so much more than a club. My closest friends on campus all came through the newspaper, and I can’t shout out everyone, sadly.
While I very well may end my tenure having never won Griff Picks, I know for a fact it was the best decision I ever made in my college career. The fact that names like Brandon Bass, Jay Cutler and Roy Hibbert will never fail to make me laugh for years to come is a credit to the many nights Nolan Hopkins, Aidan Joly, Jay Ashdown, Connor Pohlman and I shared in our sports corner.
Of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank my countless professors in the journalism and communications field: Dan Higgins, Dr. Irwin, Dr. Wanzer, Dr. Hartman and everyone else who has educated me and helped me become not only a better professional but a better person as a whole. Even the struggles of having practically two years wiped out due to COVID didn’t deter them, or any professors, from trying to put us in a position to succeed, and for that I am grateful.
Going back to that cliché I wrote about earlier, with my last day of classes a month to the day from when I’m writing this, I feel content saying that I made the most out of my four years at Canisius, and I’m confident that indecisive and perfectionist 18-year-old Adam made the right decision.
So, with all that said, I feel obligated to conclude in the only way I know how as a Buffalonian: Go Bills and Go Griffs.
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