Love

Yesterday morning, a motley crew of Ducks descended into the impossibly hip Urbanspace food court on 45th and Vanderbilt across from the Roosevelt Hotel. Despite hangovers of varying intensities and the weight of a non-stop week resting on our shoulders, spirits soared and filled the chamber with more than just aromas from burrito vendors and donut miracle stands.

That something more was love. I don’t care how insanely sappy that is. There’s no other word to describe the banter, the keel-over laughter between scoops of peanut butter acai bowl (shout out to Liquitiera - flame sauce!) and the stories shared in reminiscence of an unforgettable week. Gassed as we all were, I felt only a few small notches dialed down from my astronomically high state of energy that the week granted me.

But it wasn’t just New York’s bustle that gave me the boost. Never in my life have I been so proud to be a Duck, to be one of a group of razor-sharp, passionate and compassionate people on a mission to learn and grow together, into the next stage of life. I don’t want to think about the moment where we cease to be united by a common place, be that Eugene, New York City or the shitty ass Newark airport. In the end though, when we Ducks fly across the country and world to make things happen and establish separate lives for ourselves, I know and I feel with every butt-shaking bone in my body that we will be bound by that same LOVE.

- Cameron Kokes 5.14.17