Sharing Alliot Grilled Cheeses

For much of my life as a vegetarian I have sustained myself on pizza, pasta, and bread. The great carb trinity in my life. In the first few years that I was a vegetarian, I didn’t like vegetables all that much. I had made the life decision based on values, not taste preferences and certainly not health. As time has gone on, I have come to love many veggies and have become more concerned with what I put in my body. Back in my college days though it was mostly a carb only diet. Each day for lunch I would excitedly head to the grill in the dining hall, order a grilled cheese, and grab some French fries. As my grilled cheese cooked, I would chat with the ladies who ran the grill. They always called me “smiley” and we enjoyed our couple minutes together each day before I would head off to devour my favorite meal.

St. Michael’s College is where I went to college and it is one of my favorite places in the entire world. It is a place where I grew as a person, challenged my thinking, discovered passions, met incredible people, found love, and had four straight years of fun. The spot that I always felt was the most representative of my love for this place was our dining hall, Alliot. Sure it got the same complaints that every dining hall gets from whiny college kids that have the same meal offerings for four years, but it never got a complaint from me.

The food was more than good, but what this place gave me was so much more than what I ate. This room gave me countless hours of laughter, camaraderie, arguments, and, best of all, people watching. My friends and I would usually spend one or two hours there each evening engaging in lively discussions that ranged from the research a friend was doing on the psychological effects of tobacco addiction to the logistics of the service project I ran that brought college students to play volleyball with men in prison to the details of what made Sharknado an amazing movie to the daily question of whether or not Luke would ever talk to the cute girl sitting a few tables over.

As time went on each night, some of us would head off to do homework or participate in an activity, and that seat would quickly be filled by another friend who had just finished their obligations for the night. It represented my favorite thing: quality time with people I love. Those circle tables seemed to expand to fit an infinite number of people, just as my heart seemed to throughout my years there. This was more than just a room with walls, tables, and food, and I treasured every moment there. Eventually the meals had to end and all the people I loved who filled those seats headed off in different directions post-college. My life eventually led me to a career in education in Arkansas, motivated by those very moments, to give rural low-income students the opportunity to experience the same growth and joy that I received through higher education.

After three years of teaching the same group of students, St. Mike’s hadn’t just become this legendary place to me, but for many of my students, too. They had heard endless stories about the place, had earned tons of SMC swag in my classroom, and had even met some of the people from my stories when they came to visit me. This led me and Sarah to decide to offer a spring break trip for students to visit the Northeast, with St. Mike’s being the big attraction. We handed out applications, conducted interviews, and eventually chose seven students for the adventure. While fundraising to cover expenses, we planned an itinerary that included college visits and exploring around Boston, some tourist stops in Vermont, two days at SMC, and countless new experiences for our little crew.

We had a great week that included cooking and trying lobster for the first time, sledding for the first time, exploring history along the Freedom Trail in Boston, doing a Ben and Jerry’s factory tour, participating in my favorite professor’s class, and countless other moments. The moment that I hold dearest in my heart though was eating lunch in Alliot. As we walked in, the excitement I get from the place was doubled by the excitement from a sixth grader when they hear the words “all you can eat.” They rushed around the cafeteria piling their plate with everything they saw, and smiling ear to ear. I, of course, had one food on my mind and went straight to the grill. Unfortunately, four years later my former grilled cheese cooks were not there, but I ordered one and chatted with the current chef. When it was done, I piled on the fries, added some dipping sauces, and headed for a circle table. The kids we already chowing down and chatting as one of my best college friends who worked on campus joined us. Sharing this place with the little people who now filled my heart daily, while they sat in the seats of the people who got my daily love in the past, was so special to me.

I was taking it all in as I bit into a delicious, buttery, cheesy, grilled cheese. I noticed my students staring at me, then they asked, “Where were the grilled cheeses?” I explained that they were made to order in the back left corner at the grill. Immediately, they all decided they wanted to go order one themselves. They asked me to show them how. This was the moment my heart nearly melted like the cheese between the bread in front of me. I finished my grilled cheese while it was still warm, took them back to the grill, told them what to say, watched as they ordered, then chatted with the chef some more with the kids this time. We went back to the table and they dove right into their grilled cheese. I again enjoyed the moment as I finished my fries. Sure, teaching a student to order a grilled cheese is hopefully not the most important skill I have imparted on them, but it was an opportunity to share a bit of myself and my life with them. This experience is one memory that has allowed us to reminisce together as they have gone on to become high schoolers who stop by my office or house frequently to discuss more meaningful bits of their own lives with me.