My Indian Heritage

I attended college at Lee University in Cleveland, TN in the late 90’s.  Lee has always held a special place in my heart and in my family.  This is where my parents met, fell in love, decided to get married and eventually had me.  I was born just 5 days after my dad graduated, in a hospital just across the street from the campus.  Lee was a stopping point on all of our family vacation road-trips to Indiana or Virginia.  We often recreated pictures of my parents from their life at Lee.  We would drive around listening to stories and seeing where we used to live.  When it came time to pick a school, Lee was my only choice. I had never wanted to attend anywhere else.  This was part of my history and my future.  

When my parents were dating, my dad and some buddies lived in a house just off campus.  This was the place to be and was always filled with people, just hanging out.  This house was famous, not just to the guys who lived there but would become part of Cleveland’s history.  Story goes that a drifter/hobo/starving artist was traveling through in an old beat up RV/truck/bus and needed a place to park his ride for a few days.  He saw this HUGE dead tree in their yard and asked if he could carve it in exchange for a place to chill.  They gave permission and the guy worked on it over the next several months/years. They didn’t realize it at the time, but they participated in an iconic statue that everyone who’s been to Cleveland, TN or Lee University has heard about & taken pictures with.  

Even today, as we drive through campus I am looking for familiar sites.  The campus has changed so much, growing exponentially over the years, ever expanding with new buildings and record enrollments.  But some things will always stay the same.  Though the Indian Head has been moved several times and has found its home in various parts of the city, I always seem to find it and relish in the small part it has in my story. 

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