Hello, fellow Field alums!
Welp, it’s that time again. Summer is winding down (metaphorically, not temperature-ly) and new and returning students and faculty have begun to migrate back down Foxhall Road like a flock of silly geese (which we are.) This is a place of comfort, excitement, and possibility for many of us. But for our new students, I bet it’s also pretty intimidating to be in such a new environment.
Do you remember your first day on campus? For me, it was the very first year Field moved from Dupont Circle to the Cafritz house, and I remember riding one of our iconic blue buses up that preposterously steep hill, watching the gleaming white brick of the (then) new A building (which is also new again, this year – seriously, you’ve got to check it out.) It felt like a different planet.
I was absolutely petrified. I kept hearing Darth Maul’s scary Star Wars music in my head throughout that first day (in my defense, it was 2002 and I was 14.) All I could think about was everything that could go wrong. Maybe people wouldn’t like me. Maybe the teachers would be mean. Perhaps it would turn out that I didn’t even go here. And then, to make matters worse, within 5 minutes of being on the new campus, somebody told me that the building was haunted.
But in the weeks, months, and eventually the years that followed, I found something in Field that I didn’t even know I was looking for. Another home. Another family. And (knock on wood) no ghosts (yet.)
But you know what? Maybe the building is haunted—not by ghosts, but by us. By decades of our memories and experiences and the lives we lived within these walls. Our laughter, our learning, our collaboration, our self-discovery. Every conversation, every emotion, every victory, every defeat. All of it remains here, echoing from the past. The current Field students might not be able to hear it as we can, but I can tell you from experience that they feel it. They feel that this is a home.
Speaking of homes (nice transition,) mark your calendars for Homecoming on Saturday, October 5, 2024! We’ll have games, food, activities, and many opportunities to reconnect with your fellow alums, teachers, and current students. If you’re a graduate of a year ending in 4 or 9, this is an extra special reunion for you! Unfortunately, that doesn’t include me (class of 2006, represent) but I forgive you.
I hope to see you there!
David Kongstvedt, ‘06
