With each passing day it seems like there has been some nudge, some event or comment, reminding me that it’s just about time to go. A commencement meeting here and there, an underclassmen asking how I feel, the countdowns sprawled across whiteboards, or even just sitting down to write this. There’s no other way to describe it than weird.
The other day while walking down the path along the green to JA I thought to myself how many times I’ve walked this exact route. It has brought me to my dorms the past three years and I walked it to visit friends prior to that. Besides math not being my strong suit, I really couldn’t think of a number. Maybe it’s a thousand or even close to a million, but I just kept thinking about how strange it was that this walk is what’s most familiar for me at Conn. The friendly concrete slabs, the sewers in front of Knowlton, the little dip in front of Harkness, it’s all so usual and comfortable. But as I neared JA I thought to myself again that maybe it’s a good thing that this is what’s most familiar to me, a walk, because sometimes familiarity and comfort can be a dangerous thing.
When I think back to the past four years I’ve realized that right when I started getting too comfortable is when I really wasn’t taking advantage of what Conn has to offer and right when I stopped being comfortable, was when I realized how much I love it here.
The “yes motto” I’ve adopted the past year and half has broadened my idea of never getting too comfortable. Last year a senior friend of mine explained that her spring semester motto was “yes” after having had to say no to so many experiences in the fall and feeling like she was missing something. After vowing to live by the “yes” I’ve realized it has truly made all the difference. Yes, I’ll eat dinner with you and your random friends I’ve never met before. Yes, I’d love to walk through the arbo and explore. Yes, I will gladly listen to your concerns about a problem you’re dealing with. Say yes to everything you can. While your Netflix account may be more enticing than the environmental panel in Blaustein, force yourself to go, you won’t regret it.
Live by the yes. Never stop making friends. Establish a friendly relationship with as many people as possible. Be actively involved if you want something to change. Conn hands us a lot, but if you want to experience change you need to be proactive about it.
College isn’t always going to be the best time of your life, don’t let Animal House fool you, but making minor adjustments, changing your no to a yes, makes a hell of a difference and as I’ve learned, can get you pretty damn close.
— Eleanor Hardy, Sports Editor
