7 influences that have shaped and defined my college experience

Did I really hit 20? Like, three years ago? Wait, I'm married... a college graduate... and I have my own apartment, and an apartment with its accompanying bills?!?! The realization of adulthood has hit me with full force, leaving me temporarily paralyzed with unbelief at the situation at hand. The onset of adult hood has ushered in the beginning of a new era. One filled with both joy and suffering. Of course, I speak of the suffering that only at&t customer service can summon. The company is more disorganized than Bane's plot on Gotham.

"This is the instrument of your liberation."

College, life's Golden Corral buffet, has come to an end. And like the buffet, I'm walking away from the university satisfied but a bit uncertain as to what it'll do to me.

"Mmmm, statistics..."

Don't get me wrong, the past four, errr, five years of school have been great. I'm certainly a different person than who I was out of HighSchool. No doubt I've learned a lot (as apposed to "alot". Thank you Comm III) But to attribute this change solely to a collection of classroom lectures would be to deny all the hundreds of other people and events that have influenced me over the past four years. So, in honor of those influences who are responsible for shaping me, whether person or event, I've compiled a list of the top 7 influences of my college career. In no particular order, here they are:

You know, the show about a group of stranded boar hunting-love affair-time traveling islanders. It's really a great show if you enjoy wasting 6 seasons of your life to figure out that (spoiler alert) THEY'RE ALL DEAD!

"No really, that was the plan all along." 

Even with it's flaws, I still have a massive debt to the show. Not because of anything relating to the show, though. You see, during my freshman year I took a class called "intro to ministry", and in that class I was required to find a mentor for the semester. Any mentor. Literally anybody would do as long as he was older than myself. All that was required was to meet once a week with the mentor and, ummm, do mentor stuff? I had three weeks from the beginning of the semester to find one. Well, being the top-notch student that I was, I gave myself ample time to find just the right guy to mentor me. And by ample time I mean I randomly asked some guy I didn't know an hour before I needed to have one commit to me. That man was Chance Vanover.  

From left to right:
(Mason Drumm, the Chapel Guy, Carmon Drumm)

I was in a bind and needed a mentor THAT DAY. So I looked around me, saw the chapel guy, and thought,"if he can deal with 1,500 students everyday what's one more?" Thus began one of the most influential relationships I've formed this past 5 years. "Wait a minute," you say, "what'd LOST have to do with this?" Great question! Our weekly meetings were really just a prerequisite for him having me and my (then) girlfriend, Carmon, over to his house to watch the last season of LOST together. It was during those times when the Vanover's and Drumm's really got to know each other. And for the theologically minded, LOST is a playground for biblical symbolism and parallelisms for nerds like us to talk about. I actually remember walking in to his office and seeing this:

I rest my case. 

Apart from what shows I watched, Chance had an even bigger hand in shaping my faith. It was those early years of college that paved the way for things to come. I remember lots of wrestling with new ideas and challenges to some of my long held assumptions. God totally used him to really root the truths of the gospel in my life and for that I'm eternally grateful.

There are, no doubt, others that have been influential in my life, spiritually speaking. But more than any other one person, It was Chance that really opened the doors for a new era of thinking and studying to begin, which brings me to the next big influence/shaper on my list.

-Reformed Theology-

I already know some people are going to read that and be all like, "theology idolatry!" That's ok, but I have it on my list not because I love assigning myself to a certain sect or branch out of pride or something like that, no, I have it on the list because it works as a good blanket term for a huge group of readers, writers, thinkers, doers, preachers and teachers that all have ties to this "tribe" of Christianity. Despite attending a rather non-reformed school, pastors like John Piper, Matt Chandler, Francis Chan, and Timothy Keller have made their ways into my line of sight. And in some odd harmonious way, I've  come to a deeper understanding of the sovereignty of God and the depravity of man through their works. For how long their influence will hold on to my ever changing views... I don't know. 

"I said restoration, not reformation!"

Since we're talking about reformers, it's fitting then to go on to my next big influence. He has been my roommate, my bassist, my groomsman and constant academic crutch. Perhaps the smartest person I know and one of my closest friends. Ladies and gentleman, I give you Zach Dawson.

Quite the scholar. 

But seriously, there was a time in college when I was kind of just drifting along. I was doing alright academically, but I really wasn't taking school as seriously as I could have. Zach changed that.

The first time I met him I hated the guy. He showed up to class all dressed up, with his little curly hair, and his fancy starbucks coffee and his nose all up in the air (I made that part up). With his devilish good looks I knew he'd be a threat to my game. He was a year younger than myself and I couldn't help but notice he was a rather intelligent guy. In fact, he's the only person I know that literally stops and thinks about what he is going to say before he says it. Unless he has a mandolin...

...in which case he says and does anything that comes to mind. 

But it was Dawson that really impacted the way I thought of my education. He displayed what it is to honor God with your mind. Both in purity and in intellectual excellence. His friendship spurred me on to do the same and that's something that I take with me everywhere I go now. I only wish he'd improve his handwriting.

Seriously Dawson, how do you do that?

Moving on...

Have you seen this photo before?

(Rhetorical question)

Of course you have. Because if you're my friend on facebook I have to assume you've looked through every one of my photo albums. All 38 of them. Just as I have yours. And in your queries through my albums you undoubtedly recognized the canny resemblance of the above photo to a recent blockbuster poster. That's right, you're not mistaken, 'Les Miserables'! I was there baby, where all that movie magic happened!

...turns out they cut this part.

NBD. Visiting places like this was common for me in 2010. Not only did I see Hobbiton, but me and a handful of other students got to travel around Asia and the Pacific for three months together with nothing but our backpacks and chopsticks.

...well, mostly backpacks.

Countries visited: Hong Kong/China, Japan, New Zealand and Australia. Ironically, the highlight of my time at OC was when I wasn't at OC. Thus making my Pacrim experience a no-brainer for this list. How could it not make it? If there was ever a life-changing, eye-opening, worldview-challenging event than this would fit the bill.

Forced to hangout with 11 other students, I'm now friends with some of the coolest people I know that I'd otherwise never had befriended. Even more, Me and our sponsor, Jeff Simmons, hit it off and have since gone through a few books together.

Highly recommended.

The trip left me with a desire to do more. More learning, more studying, more evangelizing, more reading, and definitely more traveling. In fact, it's likely the biggest influencer on Carmon and I's decision to move to Japan. I mean come on, there's a Pokemon Center of the world!

SO awesome...

Had I not experienced it before, no way I'd up and move there now.  Just don't remind me of the sea of people and the fact that Japan is the most densely populated country on Earth.

...NOT so awesome.

What are we thinking?

Shortly after my trip I was asked to fill a drumming position with a band. Now, to this day I don't understand why I was afforded the opportunity. The band has been around for over twenty years, includes some of the greatest musicians in Oklahoma, has steady gigs, and plays awesome music. Again, why and how I came to be a part of it is beyond me.

I do bring a certain level of classiness though.

Regardless of the reason, Im honored to have played with these guys. Because of them, I've learned some valuable things and grown as a musician, which is why SOULED OUT - and all the musicians in it, have a spot on this list.

Brian's fro almost made the cut.

In OKC, drummers are a dime a dozen. Don't believe me? Search our craigslist under gigs and see what comes up. What you won't find is a band looking for a drummer, save country western bands but they don't count. You will, however, see plenty of adds by drummers looking for a band. Thankfully, I haven't had to do that. Perhaps one of the only downsides about moving to Japan is that I wont get to play with these guys anymore (and Amy, you're one of "these guys"). Jamming with them will be sorely missed.

Especially those 100-degree Fahrenheit gigs.

Now in this next one I'm kind of cheating a bit because there's really two influences, but I'm rolling them together. Partly because the two of them shared the same seasons of my life, and partly because I can't remember one without thinking of the other. I recall the two working in unison at the beginning of my sophomore summer. Slowly chiseling away at all of my comfort zones and musical preferences. This was a particularly vulnerable time in a college students life. The time where he or she finds out who they are, what is and isn't socially acceptable, and whether or not you are "too cool for school".

I'm not.

While the influences mentioned earlier have all shaped my my intellect, theology, and musicianship, none of those have affected my personality like the following two people.

SammyD and Keith. Or, Sam Durrill and Keith Ellingson. Or elingston, or ellinson. His last name isn't important, but what is important is the few summers I spent riding in a bus with them on tour. 
The occasion, a school sponsored summer long tour where myself and 7 other musicians performed cover songs to a vast collection of Christian summer camps. We were called The Summer Singers. But people knew us as THE Summer Singers.

"The most exhilarating live performance of our time."
-Rolling Stones Magazine

There were others in the bus over the years for sure, all of which are great friends that I love and miss. But the transformation that happened in me that first summer is largely due to the acts of these two guys:

:( & :)

You may be shocked to find out, but I was once sported a rather uptight, cautious, and no-bologna attitude. If, for instance, a group of people wanted to have a dance party in a moving vehicle then I would have no part in it! It's unsafe, likely against the law, and, depending on the song, could possibly lead to uncomfortable situations with awkward pelvic movements.

Grade-A Bologna.

Or, should a member of the band desire to de-pants somebody in front of a large crowd, I'd object with full force. That didn't stop them though. Completely inappropriate! 

However, after a summer with Keith and Sam I was changed forever. Turns out that if you're around somebody for a certain period of time you begin to mirror them. That's what happened with me. And thankfully, those guys have a great sense of humor, positive attitudes, and a real love for people that I'd like to think rubbed off on me. 

Really, if I've learned anything from the two of them, it's that I'm not as cool as I'd like to think I am. As a result, I don't have to be worried about some superficial reputation, I don't have to always be in control, and most importantly, I can enjoy being myself no matter who I'm around. 

Let's us continue...

Throughout the last few years I've really been able to do a lot of things. And as you know, things aren't cheap, but if you're lucky you get what you paid for. My college education for instance was quite the expense. My Pacrim trip I mentioned earlier was also quite the expense. Not to mention housing, food, books clothes and tons of other essential necessities that have added up over these last few years.

ESSENTIAL* 

Now, I'd like to go ahead and give a shout out to my Dad and Mom right now because they were definitely the ones that I've been piggy-backing on for the last 5... 22 years.

Of course my parents were a huge influence these last few years, but I'm trying to keep this post centered around my college experience, and so I'll turn to another parent-like figure. He's the one that introduced me to OC. He's responsible for a lot of the musical opportunities I've been blessed with, and he's granted me scholarship awards. Which, by the way, made piggy-backing a little less strenuous for my parents. Yes, I'm very much indebted to my college music jazz professor.

"Dr. Jones, Dr. Jones!"

I met Heath in High School during State Jazz competition. The event has been hosted at OC for as long as I can remember, and every year during the competition, unbeknownst to me, he'd plant the idea in my head that I should attend his University and be in his jazz band.
At the time, all I knew was that I wanted to drum for a jazz band and get some type of religious education, and it turns out there's not too many colleges that can offer both without compromising on one or the other. That is, except OC. So long story short I enrolled at OC, and since then, Jones has always been somebody that's helped me to see life in the most positive way possible. Even though he probably doesn't know it, a few of the most pivotal decisions in my life have been influenced by his advice and actions.

Including this one. 

Now, let me reiterate that there are so many more people and things that have shaped me over these past few years. Spring sing band, Westwood, Christopher Nolan and Calvin's Eggs just to name a few. The one's mentioned are just a couple of the first to come to mind. There is one blaring omission some might be thinking of. She's about 4 feet tall, dark hair, gorgeous, met her at OC freshman year, fell in love, proposed, engaged, then married... her name is Carmon...my wife. She is, without a doubt, the MOST influential person to have entered my life. But placing her next to all these other things and people wouldn't do justice to her. She deserves her own post. Maybe even her own blog. Maybe even her own book. That's it! I'll write her biography... but later. For now though, you'll have to get along with this.

Seriously. NG needs to get on this.