This past weekend, Sophia and I headed East to Philadelphia to visit Drexel University to determine if Sophia would attend there next fall. After traveling on three airplanes (BBQ in Austin, deep dish pizza in Chicago and a total travel time of 12 hours) we arrived late Friday evening, after a trip to WaWa, at my sister Nina’s house in Malvern, PA.

Saturday we did the usual mother/daughter shopping bonding and made the rounds of visiting our PA and NJ cousins, who each lobbied their case for Sophia to attend school on the East Coast.

Sunday was the big day. We got up early and took the train from Malvern into 30th Street Station and walked the three blocks to campus. It was “Welcome Acceptance Day” and Drexel pulled out all the stops. We passed the marching band as we entered the recreation center where we were met by dozens of greeters who ushered us past the complementary coffee/tea bar and into the gymnasium. Three jumbo-trons lining the strobe lit stage streamed videos while  pop music blared from the speakers. I was spellbound to say the least. Tears welled up in my eyes as I scoped the audience and slowly absorbed the reality that this is college. Oh my. I was in awe.

Sophia, however, was not. Later she told me she knew in an instant that even though Drexel seemed like a really great school, it wasn’t the school for her. It took seeing a large campus in a bustling urban setting for her to realize that Lewis and Clark, a small, liberal arts college in a rural community outside of Portland, OR, was much better suited for  her.

I’m so relieved. Relieved that Sophia is happy, that she’s going to a great school and that this gut-wrenching decision process if finally over.