I am a self-proclaimed (and rightfully so) 2%’er.
For those of you not familiar with this Aggie term, simply put, I’m not crazy excited about all of the Aggie traditions and rarely participate in them. HOWEVER! I do respect them, know their significance and will always be proud to be part of the Fightin Texas Aggie class of 2007 ( ahem 2010).
When it comes to the significance of this day, April 21st, I will always be amazed at how proud I am to be an Aggie.
Aggie Muster
Aggies gathered together on June 26, 1883 to live over again their college days, the victories and defeats won and lost upon the drill field and classroom. Eventually the annual gathering evolved into a celebration of Texas Independence on San Jacinto Day – April 21st. Over time the tradition has changed, but its very essence has remained “If there is an A&M man in one hundred miles of you, you are expected to get together, eat a little, and live over the days you spent at the A&M College of Texas.” Muster is celebrated in more than four hundred places worldwide, with the largest ceremony on the Texas A&M campus in College Station.
During the Muster ceremony tonight is the Roll Call for the Absent. The Roll Call honors Aggies that have fallen since the last Muster roll was read. As the names are read, a friend or family member answers ‘Here’, and a candle is lit to symbolize that while those Aggies are not present in body, they will forever remain with us in Aggie Spirit.
“Softly call the Muster, let comrade answer, Here….”
Muster is a time to look to the past, present, and future…not only to grieve but to reflect and to celebrate the lives that connect us to one another. A gesture so simple in nature yet so lasting in spirit, Muster is the lasting impression every Aggie leaves with us; it reminds us of the greatness that lies within these walls, of the loyalty we possess, of the connection that binds us, and of the idea that every Aggie has a place of importance – whether they are present in flesh or spirit.
This year Muster is dedicated to the Fightin Texas Aggie class of ’61!
In the list of facts about the Fightin Texas Aggie class of ’61, I saw one that just made me smile 🙂
5. Aggieland ’61, the yearbook, was dedicated to three special groups of women: the students’ mothers, wives, and sweethearts with this writing:
“Every man needs an inspiration to reach and realize his life’s goals and ideals’ this inspiration is more often than not received from womankind. In early life we first receive this spirit from our mothers who watch over us as we grow into manhood. Then, as we grow older our interests widen and the scope takes in a girlfriend, our sweetheart, and later still we take a wife who now has that great job of pushing us onward. At Texas A&M, few are the students who can make it through without that bit of inspiration from our mothers, wives, or sweethearts. We live here without women and for five days a week studies are next to impossible without those pictures, those letters or that little love and inspiration. It is with these thoughts that we dedicate this book to our mothers, wives, and sweethearts, represented on this page by the Mother of the Year, Mrs. A&M, and the Aggie Sweetheart.”
So, here is to the Fightin’ Texas Aggie class of ’61 and the friends and families of our fallen Aggies who will be honored in tonight’s Muster ceremony.
“Muster will never change. It will survive, unscathed by time, because it is a tradition enriched with the devotion of one Aggie to the other. The reverence, the silence, it’s all part of the notion that Aggies never leave their roots, nor are they forgotten by their own.”
-Pat Pearson ’83
We Met in a Bar 