The Last Time...

Today I did something completely normal that I will probably never do again. I took a walk across campus to the Student Village for lunch. I needed to stay on campus during my "lunch break" for a team meeting, so I decided to eat at Einstein Bros, the deli shop in the bottom floor of the residence complex. My reasoning was at first almost subconscious, before I fully realized that it would probably be the last time I would do that before graduating. It was almost surreal, knowing that I would likely never again enter this building that for most of 3 years was my home.
It was the last time I would cross that pedestrian bridge into the second floor. The last time I would shuffle down that half-spiral stairway. I was a little disappointed that there was nobody playing the piano in the atrium. It was eerily quiet and empty.
It was the last time I would stuff my face with a Turkey Triple Decker (which I maintain is the pinnacle of deli achievement). I thought of all the meal's I've had there, how many hours I've spent standing in line to order that same sandwich. I finally spent the last of my "Riddle Bucks" that I've been accumulating- and, more recently, spending- over the past 4 years. As I ate I thought of the first time I walked into the building, that now seems so long ago.
It was the last time I'd notice the USMC pull-up bars along the way and think I should stop and crank out a few but walk on by anyway. The last time I'd come to that awkward intersection next to Doolittle Hall and wonder which way really is faster. Curiously, I was approached by a squirrel on the sidewalk, as if to remind me where I am and bid me farewell. This place was my life. Now that I live off campus- and especially now that I only have classes two days- I don't often really see the place. It was an odd paradox, everything so familiar yet suddenly so uncommon, and being so conscious of the fact that it's all about to be a part of my past.
It's not over just yet. I still have (a mere) 4 days of classes plus finals, with 26 days to graduation. There is plenty to be done in the meantime. But there was something oddly symbolic about going through my old daily routine one last time.