Photo by Jay Paul
Glynis Boyd Hughes was overcome with emotion while having her graduation photo taken outside Virginia Commonwealth University’s Cabell Library in May.
“Standing on the Compass, I remember my first day back at VCU after having been gone over 20 years,” she shares via email. “I was standing there that warm August day in 2017, the first day of classes, overwhelmed by how different everything looked, kinda scared, not knowing anyone and praying for the strength to be successful after so many years of wanting to complete my undergraduate studies. Memories — starting Retro Rams, breaking my wrist the semester I had a 25-page paper, my amazing professors, making friends, being recognized as a student leader, the silly times. …VCU stopped being just a place to get a degree and finally became my home. And now I am standing here in my graduation robe and cap, and it’s different — not the way I had quite imagined because of the pandemic, but no less significant — and I am overwhelmed all over again because I did it. I really, really did it, and as exciting as it is, saying goodbye to this part of my life is much harder than I ever thought it would be.”
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