The all too familiar, love-hate relationship with your alarm rings in your ears,
disturbing you from your sleep —
oh how that sweet sound brings you back into the conscious world,
leaving your dreams with a bittersweet valediction.
You didn’t sleep through your alarm,
first victory of the day.
Opening your eyes you feel ease, not a worry in mind,
until you remember—with a rush through your head—that class begins in ten minutes.
New books, new classes, blank slates that will soon
be scribbled with mistakes of procrastination, exams, but also more memories.
Come on, take a chance,
it’s the second semester.
Cram last minute materials into backpacks and head to class —
a new schedule means new buildings, new classrooms, new people.
Don’t run, but hurry too.
Run and you’ll slip on the ice rink called the walkway
The pathways are outdoor ice-skating rinks and students are gliding into class.
Everyone struggling to not fall and experience shame in front of many eyes.
It’s all about balance.
Tisch, Ladd, Bolton, Palamountain —
buildings inside buildings.
Up the spiral staircase, you realize it’s
Down to the room numbers.
Round and round, you lose track
here and there –
201, 202, 203, 204 —
until you’re standing in a spot remembered from last semester.
Turn the knob —
choose wisely before you sit down, chances are it’ll be your seat for
the rest of the semester.
Take that chance, that leap, that seat as we embark on
the rollercoaster filled with surprises at every corner, ups and downs and,
most importantly,
the company who will be there along the ride.
Slow down,
look around,
Take in the view, smiling, waving, finding our voices together
on this roller coaster.