Lauren Meyer ’24 is planning to major in anthropology and minor in history. Outside of the Flat Hat, Lauren is a member of Swim Club and is also an avid Swiftie. Email Lauren at lemeyer@wm.edu.
The views expressed in the article are the author’s own.
Every Monday and Wednesday, I wake up to my alarm (sound: radar, for those curious). I make the arduous trek (10-minute walk) to my 11 a.m.. After that, I get lunch at Sadler with the same couple of friends, where I usually get one of the two same things (chicken nuggets or tacos, although self-serve at Global Kitchen has really upped it in my personal rankings). If I’m feeling studious, I go to the library. If not, which is about half the time, I go home and take a nap. Then, I go to my second class. I eat dinner. I do homework. If I have time, I hang out with friends.
Tuesdays and Thursdays, I have a separate but similar schedule. It’s familiar. It’s comfortable. I don’t have to work too hard. I always know what’s coming next, and best of all, I don’t have to plan. Sounds awesome, right? No decisions beyond the basics: what do I feel like eating today? Am I tired? It’s a toddler’s dream.
At a certain point, however, having everything laid out starts to feel less like convenience and more like complacency. After all, I am not a toddler, even if I do eat chicken nuggets at least twice a week. As a fully grown college student, I’m capable of making large life decisions. I can vote! I can build my credit score! I can eat vegetables with my meals! (That one’s for you, mom).
Do I actually follow the exact same pattern every day? No. But it sure does feel like it, especially when I’ve already been on campus for two years. There’s only so many times you can sit in one of the slightly off-putting classrooms of Washington Hall without questioning your sense of reality. And so, I am challenging myself and others: over the course of your day, make a change.
I’m not talking about a huge change. This is not an article proclaiming the wonders of selling all of your belongings and going backpacking through Europe. I’m just suggesting that we all remember we have free will. The future is not determined. You could go get ice cream right now. You could get up and scream. You could walk to class a different way. The world is truly your oyster.
Recently, I went to coffee in Colonial Williamsburg with a friend I hadn’t seen in awhile. As an ex-Brown Hall resident, I used to be on that side of campus all the time, but this semester I don’t think I’ve been farther than the Sir Christopher Wren Building. And so, when getting coffee, I was shocked. This whole side of campus exists! There’s a real live town with fun cafes and restaurants and confused tourists and also their dogs!
This far into the semester, it’s easy to get sequestered in your ways. Especially with midterms, it often feels like there’s no room in your schedule to do things differently. But I promise there is. Spread your wings, little griffins. Explore new skies.