“Howdy.”

If you’re reading this and attend Texas A&M University (or have happened to spend the majority of your life down below the Mason Dixon Line) then odds are you’ve heard this iconic southern greeting at least once before.

Sure, a resounding “howdy” is fun, different, and pleasurable when received from someone else. However, I never realized just how much the word “Howdy” meant to me until four Missouri girls rolled into College Station on a Tuesday evening during the spring semester of my freshman year.

I had just exited Reed Arena from Breakaway, and hopped on my bike to rush back to Evans Library to study for a Geology Exam I had the following morning. As I bolted through the parking lot, I passed four girls to whom I voiced “Howdy.” Almost immediately, each girl stopped their conversations, turned around and uttered “wait… WHAT?”

I nervously thought I had crossed some unspoken boundary that I would never hear the end of, but then I soon realized that somehow, some way, these four girls had never heard the word howdy before.

Were they from a different planet? A parallel universe? Or worse… Did they come from t.u.? I promptly told them “I said howdy!” To which one of them asked me “What is a HOW-DY?”

Noticing that their “tradition-condition” was far worse than I had expected, I then made it my mission to get to the bottom of this bad bull nonsense. I quickly explained to them that “howdy” is the official greeting of Texas A&M University. The girls then expressed to me that they had come from the University of Missouri to tour the state of Texas and wanted to see Breakaway live and in-person while they were on spring break.

Before long, the girls asked me for directions to multiple different places within Aggieland that you simply cannot find without proper guidance. Being the responsible scholar that I am, I quickly proceeded to forgo my planned studies to give these girls a tour of the school that I call home.

We journeyed for literal miles. We walked from Reed to The Rec, to Kyle Field and the Memorial Student Center, through Academic Plaza and around the century tree, all the way down to the Williams Administration Building and Bonfire Memorial. We then proceeded back up north through the ever-so heralded Northgate and Hullabaloo Hall, then back to Reed Arena where they had originally parked their car.

The girls raved about Texas A&M. They were simply enamored with the traditions, spirit, and community. Everything from the sorrow of our fallen heroes and bonfire victims, to the comical idea of “mugging down” with a significant other or complete stranger at Midnight Yell. They indicated to me several times that they had never seen a community quite like A&M, and would remember their trip here for the rest of their life.

Despite the fact that these girls got to experience an entire new school in just one night, I would like to think that I learned more than anyone that evening about the school that I get to go to every day. Until that night, I’m not sure if I realized in the fullest capacity exactly what it means to be an Aggie.

To see the way four girls from Missouri valued the significance of our spirit and traditions made me realize that being an Aggie is more than simply being a student at Texas A&M.

The Aggie Spirit lies deep within this university, and it is our duty as Aggies to be the vessels in which that spirit flows through. Being an Aggie is to be hard-working, respectful, selfless, and loyal. We are called to lead with excellence and integrity. We are called to be a part of something bigger than ourselves, sacrificing for the greater good of our neighbor.

Walking around campus that night and taking a deeper look into the spirit that runs deep within Aggieland’s roots, I found more than just a bunch of brown-brick buildings. I found a place that has set a precedent to which it is my responsibility to follow. The spirit, tradition, and unity that the Aggie Family provides was not given freely, it was earned, and we must continue to earn it each and every day to ensure that it will be there for the next Aggie that decides to join the family.

I encourage every student at Texas A&M to look at your school differently today. Instead of seeing flat land and boring buildings, I challenge you to feel the spirit set before you.

Serve your brother or sister today. Walk in excellence. Act with integrity. Commit with loyalty. Lead with respect.

And above all, be an Aggie.