New Year, New Semester, New To Do List
So it’s the New Year, Deac families. Your students will be returning to us soon to start the spring semester. They will quickly get in the swing of classes and their normal routine, but in the New Year I’d challenge them to think about a few To Dos that they might not have covered in the fall. Here goes.
Go to a Secrest Artist Series performance. They are free for students, and beauty and art are part of what make life worth living. You have two chances – February 26 and April 10.
Read a newspaper. Not just online, but the old fashioned print kind.
Eat like the townies do. This means branch out beyond your normal haunts (I am looking at you, Cook Out). I highly recommend Skippy’s Hot Dogs for lunch, or Camino Bakery for breakfast or coffee; both are on 4th street. Mary’s Gourmet Diner is awes0me at any hour, but specializes in amazing breakfast foods.
Buy someone a Valentine. Could be your significant other, your roommate, one of the staff at your favorite on campus eatery. Make someone else’s day better with an unexpected moment of joy.
Commune with nature. That could be a hike on Pilot Mountain, a long walk through Reynolda Gardens, or a trip to Salem Lake.
Learn more about local history. Visit Old Salem, Historic Bethabara, or go to the International Civil Rights Museum in Greensboro.
Write a real letter. To your parents, to a mentor who has helped you, even a love letter. Words are cherished by the ones who receive them.
Get to know at least one faculty member well. That begins by having an interest in his/her class or teaching style, and grows by regular visits to that professor’s office hours. Having close personal relationships that we can learn and grow from makes us all better people. And at some point if the chips are down and you need help – and we all will at some point! – you will have a network to draw upon for help.
Vary the way you walk to/from class or your residence hall. Take the long way sometimes. See parts of campus you don’t normally see. There is a lot going on when we watch and observe. So break out of the normal routine and see what else is out there.
Support your hallmates and classmates in their endeavors. Do you know a student athlete? Go to her game? Have a friend who is a musician? Go to his concert.
That’s just a short list of things to ponder. I also saw this graphic online and it is something worth thinking about too. Lots of positive things to do, and negative behaviors to stop doing.
Happy New Year, Deac families!