I realized leaving SIU was the right choice the night I fell asleep on the floor of a friends dorm room. I had an 8 am exam and my own room was completely empty. I was leaving in less than 12 hours. I hadn't studied for my exam, I should have been so completely terrified, but I was happy. I had this massive bubble in my chest that nothing could pop, not that I was leaving my friends or the professors that had helped me so much. I couldn't care less that I was going to drive 18 hours home, where I had no job and no plans. It didn't matter that I might not get into schools and never get a degree. I was leaving the place that had tried it's hardest to stifle me for three semesters. Other students call SIU their home and I Can see why. It was
