Pembroke's secret

Attending a small college can be a very appealing characteristic that perspective students may look for in a university. With less people, some people say that there is more of a chance of them finding that they fit in easier. UNCP, compared to many other North Carolina schools, seems an unlikely place to find friends that you are comfortable keeping close to you. Nestled in the smallest town I've ever seen, I have met great people that I have no doubt will stay in my life for a very long time. I have found a girl that I love spending time with, and I have learned to fit in a place that I was not expecting accept me so graciously. However, the small size of the school does present some problems. For months I simply walked around campus with my roommate and a few friends. After I ran out of money and was bored with the bowling lanes in the UC, I found myself looking around town for better things to do. I made it to the golf course a couple of times, heavily discounted for UNCP students and attempted to find places to hike. I became heavily involved in intramural sports and played volleyball and ultimate frisbee in the afternoons. Involving myself in activities around campus is the only way that I discovered one of the area's best kept secrets. Behind a church near campus, I heard of a tree that locals had built several diving platforms on and a rope swing fastened to one of the cypress trees that stood in the river. Below the tree was a dredged out boat launch that gave more than enough room to jump from the top platform nearly 30 feet above the water. Not only is this spot beautiful, but it is a great place to witness people outdoors with their families having fun. I think that one of the most tragic misconceptions of this area has to do with a separation between locals and students of UNCP. It's not hard to see when walking around town, that respect for those that attend the university is not a common site. And while there is a history of crime in the area, it is amplified by the low population. The crimes, as terrible as they really are, are exaggerated by the common ground that they share with everybody in the area. If there is a fight at Huddle House, everybody feels affected by it because everybody goes to Huddle House. But at the river, one can see the perfect example of normal, everyday people having fun.
The spot on the Lumber River is easy to find, and it's also very easy to spend a day with a small grill, some good friends and cold water to escape from the hot sun.