Maraya Pearson
I just found out about Dr. Colburn's passing today. I'm very saddened. But I am also happy for the impact he made on his family and countess others through his gracious life. I just wanted to leave some of my fond memories I had of Dr. Colburn while I was a student at UF. I first met Dr. Colburn in a large freshman history class and I loved how he taught history like a storyteller and how proficient he was in telling the story! He never had any notes. He just told a story and that made history come alive! I was an A student, but for some reason on the assignments where we had to define some terms, I kept getting mediocre grades and I was baffled. He told me I needed to show the *significance* of an event/law/term, not just describe what it was. I cannot tell you how many times in LIFE I hear that has echoed in my head - in projects, in marriage, in child-rearing decisions, etc. I still sometimes stop and say, now wait just a minute... WHY am I making this decision? What's the "significance" at the heart of the matter here? He was also the kindest of all the professors. I thought he looked kind of intimidating and strict, so I was a little surprised that when I waved at him while passing on campus, he stopped and took the time to say hi. He did that even when I'm sure he did not know me from Adam because that was my first class with him when I was just one of 200 students (I later took a few of the smaller classes). That always left an impression on me. And many times throughout my four years at UF, whenever we happened to pass while walking between classes and I waved (as I did with all my professors, because it just felt like the polite thing to do) he'd stop and say hi and ask a polite question or two. NONE of my other professors ever did that. They'd just say "hello" back, usually with that half smile that is trying it's very best to politely mask that they don't know who you are.. There were other ways that Dr. Colburn made me feel valued as a person, too. For one, I worked three part-time jobs while taking a full load in college and to be honest, sometimes, I wasn't the most prepared for classes (though I still attended every class dutifully). I was so incredibly busy taking classes while also paying my bills that I was basically triaging my academic priorities the best I could and some of interim non-graded things would get dropped. Well one time I had the WORST (it was just the worst, I tell you) answer to a question because I didn't know the answer but I just couldn't muster up the courage to say "I don't know" so I just made something completely up! It was SO bad that he laughed out loud at it (and he doesn't really smile in class so a full on laugh was kind of a big deal) and boy did I want to crawl under a desk and hide for eternity because I felt like I let one of the best professors down because I didn't come prepared that day. But he was totally forgiving. He never gave the impression like he lost faith in my abilities because soon after he even invited me to be a part of the first Askew group with a small handful of the university's top students like the president and vice president of the student body (which I felt so "regular" to in comparison). When I graduated, in the mind-numbing sea of thousands crossing the stage, he even stood up to give me a hug on stage! I cannot tell you how unexpected and special that made me feel. I'm getting a bit emotional, to be honest, remembering that because, unbeknownst to him, at that time in my life, I had very few people who expressed any form of care for me. You really never know what the simplest two minutes here and two minutes there can mean to the people who cross paths in your life. Because of him, I vow to stop and take time for those in my path too. To the family members, you are so blessed to have learned countless lessons from his life and legacy. I can't wait to wave again when I see him again one day! -Maraya Pearson
