I sit next to the same people in every class everyday – I don’t know half of them, but I bet that I could recognize their faces from across the Diag. I never realized that “assigned seats” would become a lifelong habit, that they would roll over into college.
In elementary school assigned seats were meant to help students build friendships and avoid isolation. No one sat alone. It made sense and seemed like an intelligent idea. Some middle schools have assigned seats, some more progressive ones do not – tweens need less social coaching. By high school, assigned seats are obsolete. No one wants to be forced next to someone they don’t know, someone they don’t care about. Students want to sit next to their friends. However, after the first few days of the school year, seats begin to greet the same students each day. A certain order is established in each classroom, a repeating matrix of faces.
College seems to be no different. If I’m searching for a face in the lecture hall, I can turn to where I saw it the day before and be almost sure to find it. Why?
People thrive on repetition. It’s safe, it’s comfortable. I know that this isn’t an enormous revelation, it’s just striking how often people fall into unnecessary routines. Personally, I avoid routines when I can. I like to wake up and make things happen. The unknown excites me. Just imagining myself working at a desk job where I sit and type in the same seat next to the same people everyday terrifies me. Now is the time for me to change it up (while my list of responsibilities is short). Now is the time for me to fly by the seat of my pants. It’s every college student’s chance.
I’m not suggesting that students should shirk their responsibilities. Homework, tests, club commitments, preparation for the future – these tasks cannot and should not be avoided. There are smaller and smarter opportunities for spontaneity. For instance, taking a trip to the Arb on a sunny day instead of napping in your dorm. Or walking a new route to your class on a Thursday morning. Take fifteen minutes to walk through part of town, sans iPhone. Plop down in a seat next to someone you’ve never seen before and (if you’re feeling oh so bold) strike up a conversation.
If you fear routine as much as I do, don’t allow yourself to get sucked into the cycles of everyday life. Break out gently, confidently. Find the uncomfortable and throw yourself into it. College is the perfect setting to do so, with its enormous population and many nooks and crannies. I hope that you find yourself a new seat every day.
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