Photo Courtesy of @missed.conn.ections
Promoting campus unity during a difficult time, the new Instagram account @missed.conn.ections has it all: cute coffeehouse barista sightings, students holding doors open, and more. Have you ever seen someone you thought was cute around campus but weren’t brave enough to say it to their face? Or saw another student being kind towards you or someone else and wanted to commend them publicly? Well, this is the premise of @missed.conn.ections. Here are some reasons why you should follow and submit a missed connection of your own.
Since all the posts are kind and complimentary or just neutral acknowledgment of cool students, it has a high potential of making some students here smile, whether it’s because they were the “missed connection” or because it’s a sweet experience a few Conn students have. If you’re the type of person who prefers to keep your thoughts to yourself, you can stick to reading posts recounting a time when Conn students missed the chance to meet each other. As a senior at Conn, I think it’s fantastic that students now have a space to share their experiences and run-ins, especially during the pandemic when most of us are feeling more isolated than ever before. The Instagram account is comprised mainly of wholesome posts and some less so (although never mean). It is so important to have a space that is filled with kindness and good intentions. These places seem increasingly difficult to find, but @missed.conn.ections is radiating some hope and joy in a dark time.
While the world can be a scary place, especially during the pandemic, it is nice to know that we are not alone on campus. Sometimes when I’m walking to the 1962 room or Harris, it feels quite isolating. I might see one or two students walking together sometimes, but it’s much emptier than it used to be. @missed.conn.ections helps us see that we are not the only student shivering on our way to pick up food from the dining hall on a stormy night. Maybe someone was having a great day and was really confident in their ensemble, and instead of it going unnoticed, perhaps another student saw and thought they looked amazing. Spreading kindness, like many other things in life, is a choice. Even if you’re naturally a kind person, you still choose to share your kindness each day, either subconsciously or consciously. The Instagram account shows us that for the students on- and off- campus, we are more than just faces on a screen. I don’t think I’m the only one who’s seen another student from one of my classes in a social setting and thought to myself: “Whoa, that’s Jake from economics class!” (there is no Jake in economics that I know of, but you get the point). Fewer things will go unsaid and that is a benefit of this Instagram account that I love as a writer and as a human who cares and wants to listen.
Now I’m going to mention one of the more primitive selling points of the account, in case everything above doesn’t persuade you. We all know that Conn students, like all college students, love to gossip, or spill the tea, if you will. This love is usually coupled with a fear that what has been said between trusted friends may be told to others and spread to those whom they do not wish to be aware of their information. Now there’s an Instagram that allows Conn students to spill the tea and to listen to that of other students here at Conn, while being mindful of each other. Let’s not have a Gossip Girl situation break out at Conn. Submit a story about another student you saw on campus whose vibe you love, tell a friend that their outfit looks great, and always remember to be kind and respect your fellow Camels.
