We’re almost a month into the school year now. Freshmen are slowly finding their way while upperclassmen are sinking into their new roles on campus. Even us seniors are attempting to decipher between which faces are new or old. (“You’re my year?! Oops.”)
There are some faces on campus that have been here with us since the beginning. They secretly make our college experience even smoother without us realizing it. These are the people we should all take the time to recognize: the dedicated workers at Emmanuel.
I’m talking about the cafe workers who never fail to greet us with a smile. The facilities crew, who, yes, are very easy on the eyes, but also happily fix anything and everything on campus. The campus safety team who will stop and have genuine conversations with you if you give them the chance. Or how about the cleaning crew who picks up after everyone in the dorms every single day? These are the faces you should be getting to know on campus. These are the people who make our days better without any recognition or expectations.
Time for a reality check. Unfortunately, many members of our community are disrespectful to these unsung heroes. Whether it’s intentional or not, it’s frustrating to see. These are the students who leave food all over the table after they eat a meal in the dining hall. The students who carelessly throw paper towels around the bathrooms without thinking twice about picking them up. And these are the same students who don’t treat their living spaces with respect, as if they can’t be held responsible for broken furniture or dirty kitchens.
You are not above anyone. If anything, you’re privileged to attend such a well kept school. You should be thanking the workers who maintain it, not showing disrespect through your thoughtless actions. You should be responsible enough to pick up your pieces of stray food off the table if you’re a messy eater. You should be smart enough to wipe down the kitchens after you use them and put your trash into a bin rather than on the floor. And you should definitely be kind enough to greet these workers with a simple smile instead of scurrying past them in a huff.
Maybe you can live carelessly at home, but remember, you’re on your own now. You can no longer live like a slob or act like one in public without it coming off as disrespectful. Be mindful of your actions, be kind to those who care, and learn to think of others. It’s that simple.
Thank you to all of the workers who continue to make our community feel like a home. You deserve the utmost respect and I’m sorry on behalf of the students who fail to recognize this.
We can be better, fellow students. We have to be.