Christopher Lai | Creative Director
Featured illustration by Jasmine Wiradharma
Starting university is exciting. Few people start their first year at York without a sense of exhilaration and anticipation. Frosh, parties, bars, student clubs…oh, and classes. Going to class is important too, right? In this environment, there’s always something that’s pulling at you. Looking at the list of things I just mentioned, it’s worth noting that alcohol plays a large role in three of them — although frosh bosses at York are indeed striving for a “dry” frosh, we can assume there will be a selection of students who won’t adhere to that.
Your mother probably warned you about peer pressure — about not “jumping off of a bridge because all your friends jump.” But mommy isn’t watching you 24/7 anymore. University is a stepping stone between adolescence and adulthood, where your decisions are finally your own. It is tempting to follow what the majority of your peers do. If a bunch of them blow off an assignment, why not you, too? If they’re telling you frosh is awesome, it must be, right? If they tell you getting buzzed is the right way to enjoy the party, then why not grab a bottle? Right?
Maybe. I’m not here to tell you how you should spend your time here at York, because I am certainly not your mother. If cracking open a couple cold ones with friends is how you want to kick back and put the essays from your mind, then hey, go ahead. If your weekend isn’t complete without some drinking and a decently raucous party, I won’t tell you that’s wrong. C’est la vie.
That cuts both ways though. You don’t need to buy into the hype that says a good time means intoxication. No one can tell you that drinking and partying until the cops come is the norm. Sure, maybe it is for some students, but it doesn’t need to be so for you. Whether you choose to enjoy yourself, sober or not, just be sure that the decision is yours.
You’re in university. You’re an adult. Make your own choices and feel good about them. I say, do what is right for you, whatever that may be. Take student politics by storm. Be the most hardcore Hufflepuff the Harry Potter club has ever seen. Be the front-row keener whose hand shoots up every lecture. Go out dancing every night to unwind. Become a tutor and help out fellow students for a little cash. Play cards over coffee at Great Canadian Bagel. Or just turtle-up and zero in on your classes and assignments.
You might feel pressure to conform to other people’s idea of fun and recreation. It’s easy to fall into the trap of feeling like you’re missing out, or that your university experience is somehow lacking or inferior to that of your peers’. Ultimately, this chapter of your life will be what you make of it.
You have the right to spend your time in university however you need in order to stay balanced, productive and happy.
