ROOMMATES ONCE OR TWICE UPON A TIME
Becky and I were college roommates at Lipscomb—first in Johnson Hall and the spring we graduated, in the brand new Fanning Hall. We weren’t “best friends” and yet we had lots of fun together that year. She was very popular—it was just hard not to love this small town beauty who loved to laugh. I had transferred to Lipscomb as a sophomore and was thankful to develop friendships among several already established groups.
Becky was engaged to Ben, a popular and handsome young man from another small Tennessee town, and they looked like they belonged together. We were shocked that they split up that spring. She was elected May Queen, and I was one of the senior attendants. And then came graduation! What was next?
Planning to be an elementary school teacher, Becky decided to stay in Nashville to get started in that field. I accepted a National Defense scholarship to Vanderbilt to get a Ph.D. in German. Connie, a Lipscomb friend who had graduated the previous year, was going to graduate school and teaching at Lipscomb. We decided to live together for that transitional year for us all.
We rented a furnished brick bungalow on Sweetbriar Avenue from September through May or June, and my mother planned to come keep house for us. That turned out to be a wonderful plan because my brother Glenn suddenly died of a cerebral hemorrhage on September 1. Moving to Nashville for that nine months really helped Mother through the most painful loss of her life. She enjoyed a taste of city life, developed some new friendships and delighted in spoiling “her girls.” We were a most appreciative audience for her delicious cooking and so thankful not to have major housekeeping chores as we studied and worked.
By the end of the school year, I was engaged to Tom. We all moved away from Sweetbriar Avenue to go our separate ways. Both Becky and Connie came to Athens to be bridesmaids at my wedding that August. Life went on…and on. And then a few years after I’d moved to Nashville, Becky returned. Her dad was in his late 90’s in Fayetteville so she taught in the Nashville-Franklin area and spent weekends caring for him until his death. In this photo, we were at a dinner event in Nashville with other friends from our Lipscomb years. It’s been a joy to reconnect with them!
Seeing a story 