When I first moved to Nashville four years ago, I found myself seeking out friendships. I had never been very good at meeting people. Believe it or not, I can count on one hand the people I met and “befriended” in college… and I’d have fingers left over. I had just never learned how to assert myself and meet new people (a trait that I thankfully have developed over time) and as such, I became good at being a loner.

My husband came with a built in group of friends who, thankfully, all accepted me with open arms. However, I craved people who understood my love of Texas. Who were from where I was from. Who could understand a part of me that I could never explain. I wanted my Aggies.

So, I sent an email to the only contact I could find on the local A&M club web-site. I asked about opportunities to get together with other Aggies, and to my delight an email came shorty later. There would be a football game watching party coming up that I was encouraged to attend.

Texas A&M was playing Oklahoma, and my husband was out of town on the road. I wanted to go and somehow relive the days of standing at Kyle Field rooting on my Aggies. So, despite having no clue where I was going, and this being pre-GPS days, I headed out that Saturday evening armed with nothing more than a map from MapQuest. I wasn’t even guaranteed I’d be able to call my husband for directions, and I didn’t have anyone else’s number yet. Nonetheless, nervous as can be, I went.

It was the only party I made it to that year, but it was wonderful. I was surrounded by Aggies again. I was surrounded by people who knew where I was from. Who understood my passion for my school. We, ironically, ended up at the same location as the Oklahoma alumni group, which I, personally, found to make it even more fun. I don’t think anyone else would agree with me of that, but I sure enjoyed it.

This weekend, Texas A&M will face Oklahoma again, and due to that first game watching party, this game always holds a little place in my heart as a favorite.

Unfortunately, I have been very disappointed and frustrated with this year’s game watching parties. I missed one due to not feeling well, but I’ve been to all the rest. We’ve never had more than four people at a party. Oh don’t get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoy these people and I think they’d be the people I’d sit with even if we had a huge group attend. But, it gets disheartening to try to put a party together only to not have anyone show up.

Being deep in SEC territory, we have to work to find a location that will show our game without pushing us out mid-game for another game. (Its happened before.) Evening games means finding a venue that doesn’t have live music at night. We like to keep it family-friendly, which usually means venues that close early. We’ve really had to juggle to find locations that will work, and this week I really wanted to throw in the towel. I was just fed up and done with the parties due to the (perceived) lack of interest.

Then I remembered my first game watching party and how much it meant to me. And I thought to myself, “What if there is a new Aggie here who is where I was four years ago? What if our party could be their chance to reach out to people from home?”

So this weekend, we will gather again. Probably three of us will be there. But we will gather and we will enjoy the evening. I’ll be glad we got together. I always am. It doesn’t matter if its two Aggies or twenty, its a touch of back home for an evening. I appreciate it and love it.