Freshman jam into the dining hall, yearning for their fill of Ritchie chicken patties. The smell of new, cascading fountains invigorates the campus air. A student nearby struggles to remain conscious in his initial class of the year. The squirrels welcome back the students, standing uncomfortably close, as students think to themselves, “No, you can’t have the rest of this ice cream cone.” It is the beginning of the fall semester.
The commencement of the fall semester can be full of excitement for many people. There are new faces everywhere and unique experiences ready to unfold. The hype during the beginning of each fall semester is unlike anything we will ever experience again, and it remains memorable throughout our college careers.
This is the time where we make new friends, build on past acquaintances, and have a transcendent time sharing our experiences with one another. As friendships and relationships bloom, we discover the people that will make the remainder of our school year enjoyable, and grow with them as young adults.
As we are having the times of our lives, the weather is slowly changing, bringing on the cool breeze, the auburn leaves, once green, cascading down from the campus trees. This is truly a magical time in nature, a time that we all cherish as students.
The campus bustles with a wide array of activities during the beginning of the fall semester. The echo of cheers from the Adrian College Performance Stadium is heard throughout campus, as the pigskin is driven down the field. The camaraderie between students reaches a point at the beginning of the semester that is unparalleled.
However, as the weeks wear on, and the workload causes anguish among us all, we sometimes lose some of this energy and excitement that the beginning of the semester offers. The papers we neglected to do force us to spend an insurmountable amount of time in the library. The friends we were once so close to end up going separate ways, or become too busy to dwell with you any longer. Students start going home for entire weekends, leaving campus a vast field with more tumbleweeds than people. The once lively campus that we all remembered will dissipate as the trials of the school year collide with students like a raging bull to a matador.
The dismal picture painted above is not something that has to happen. We, as students can keep this “beginning of the semester” feeling throughout the entire year, we just need to harness this energy for the long run. We need to keep supporting our school just as we are doing now. Students should stay on campus during the weekend, get their work done early, all for the sake of keeping the college experience alive and well in each and every one of us, every single day.
Take a second to sit back and reflect on the past two weeks at Adrian College. They should be filled with memories of new friends and exciting experiences. Let’s all continue to live here with this optimistic attitude that is so common during the beginning of the semester, and never let it fade, because when it comes down to it, we are only in college for a number of years; there is no time for us to waste being complacent and lackluster. Keep the spirit alive, and this campus’s heart will beat along with us, the driving force, the students.
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