O-H-I-O the spirit

The first time I knew about the O-H-I-O thing was last year in the summer program in Wuhan . I didn't attend the program last summer but I went to school one day for many teachers were going to give some introductions about their universities . That was when I saw Rick standing on the stage , leading everyone in the auditorium to make the O-H-I-O pose . It was very impressive .

Now I've been here for almost a week ,when looking back , one of the most impressive things I've felt here , is still the O-H-I-O thing . This is probably one if the first thing we learnt here .It occurs to me that whenever and whereever one is , when there is someone shouting "O-H", he'll get excited immediately and the words" I-O" just come out without hesitation . Not only do cheers but also the strong sense of pride will show on people's faces at this moment .

Generally speaking , it is not simply about the pose or the slogan . What I actually appreciate and admire is the spirit transmitted in this tradition . To take the campus tour as an example . That guide of us was fantastic . He did lead us to many places and tell much of the university stories and history . When we reached the mirrow lake , he told us to take pictures of the OHIO pose and informed is of the "jumping into the lake to show support for Ohio football team " tradition ,which was really amazing . I think if I'm a student here in OSU , I probably would like to do the same thing . It would make me feel that the whole school is united . And then Chris led us to the Oval and he told us that those buildings around the Oval are not allowed to change even though there are new structures and readjustment on campus every year . What makes this custom is that the reservation of environment of and around the Oval would bring those alumni a sense of home when they return to campus even after 50 years . I was quite touched by that for it was really thoughtful . Definitely this tradition contributes to the unity and cohesion among university students and all faculty . Well, I hope schools in China would develop this kind of tradition for it is really warm and lovely .

Oh , another thing that interested me was the "illibucks trophey " . Of course when Chris said that Ohio won the game between OSU and Illinois University ,that pride just flew naturally and it was very encouraging .

So that was one student , one trip , and I learnt a lot . For all these years , I've been dreaming of going to some university which would actually make me feel like "home " . Somewhere I can strongly feel that I belong here . I don't deny that Wuhan University is a wonderful place with amazing environment and I'm proud of being its students . However, I have to admit that , compared to OSU , or maybe American universities , we still have a long way to go . Maybe we could design some "W-U-H-A-N" pose to make a start ? ~ha ~