At Your Service, Your Highness!

So you’re a senior. Big deal.

I’m not sure why people don’t seem to realize the fact that if you join an institution which has courses longer than a year, you’re bound to end up a senior someday (unless of course, you’re flunking every course except the ignoble course of Booze and Pot Practical). So if you are not a disaster in every respect, it’s as natural as breathing to become a senior eventually. It does not warrant you any special powers, or the right to lord over others. You’re just another face in the crowd. And not a very pleasant one at that, if you refuse to get off your high horse once in a while.

It’s sad when a bunch of people who are supposed to exhibit model behavior choose to believe that they are superior to others because they have lived a year or two longer. Where is the logic in that? Being supercilious does not make you likable or make you appear refined in the eyes of the beholder. Trust me when I say, we just go “what a snob! “every time you decide to get all high-and-mighty on us. Being uncouth and barking out harsh words does not make us respect you. In fact, I believe respect must be earned, not forced. And certainly not extorted by threats and swears.

Before I entered college life, I was never given any exposure to the senior-junior distinction. I come from a culture where all are given equal weightage, and credit is due to those who deserve it based on merit. So it came as a jarring bit of culture shock when I was suddenly thrust into the madness of pretending to look up to people you really don’t give half a damn about. I honestly can’t bring myself to smile at a stranger on campus any longer, because it might provoke them to lecture me about how “one must never grin at seniors. It’s disrespectful and makes one look cocky”. Oh, okay, sir! Yes sir, I will bow my head in deference each time I see your holiness or any one of your royal clan, and scuttle along like the peasant that I am! I dare not meet your eyes or form coherent sentences in your presence! NO SIR! That was not a smile! My lips were just twitching from nervousness! Forgive me, your highness, I beseech you! I shall never smile again!

I’m not talking about ragging, which is another issue altogether. What I’m talking about is the culture you exhibit. When you live in a society, the way in which one acts or conducts oneself to others is very important. We are all social animals, after all, and we must behave appropriately. Your attitude towards others is telling of not only your character, it also hints at your upbringing.

One must accept all sorts of people from all walks of life, because everyone is unique in their own way. Sometimes, we choose bond with others on the basis of how much we have in common. But it is the little quirks of that person that we grow to love; their characteristic traits that set them apart from others. It is these differences that make people interesting and their idiosyncrasies that we find amusing. Imagine how boring and predictable every single day would be if we could mould the thoughts and actions of those around us to suit ourselves. Some people have behavioral characters that you like, some you loathe. It’s important not to forget that there are some out there who probably doesn't like some of your mannerisms either. Live and let live.

It’s time to set aside your inflated egos and remove that chip from your shoulder.

It’s quite common to come across senior students giving the younger students quite a tongue-lashing for increasingly stupid reasons such as growing a beard longer than the seniors or wearing sneakers. I mean, woah! I've been thinking it over, this these mindless commands seniors issue, and have come across only one logical conclusion. You have an inferiority complex, mister! One that is so big, it can be seen from outer space! You are constantly ridiculed for your inadequacies and you feel worthless and small. So you take out your frustrations on the only people in college without a voice, the first years. You need ways to feed your ego and these hapless victims are easy prey, terrified as they are of upsetting a senior. Please, get a hold of yourselves, people! Well brought up humans have a broader perspective to life and are above such shallow behavior.

So a meeting you called together did not happen. That does not mean that it’s okay to be rude to the next junior who happens to show up. It reflects only on your upbringing that you can’t keep a cool demeanor in spite of your anger, and deal with it in a level headed way. Because, irrespective of how much you swell up like a bullfrog and how sharp edged your voice may sound, there is no denying the fact that your organizing skills are poor. So why not conserve the energy you use to bloat up, and utilize it to work on improving your managerial talents?

So an event did not have adequate participation. That does not entitle you to go all Hitler on every junior in sight. Consider this, they might have shown up if you were nice about it in the first place, instead of ordering them about like the slave driver that you are! Why not try to build positive relations with those around you, relations that are built on friendship and mutual respect, as opposed to those tainted by distrust and mutual dislike?

Sure, it’s only supposed to last as long as the first year of college, but it leaves a lasting impression on our minds. As far as seniors are concerned, we are not so free with our smiles or lavish with our affections anymore. Why get off on the wrong start? Yes, maybe your seniors were rude; they did to you all the crappy things you do to us. So you vent by doing the exact same thing to us.  And the cycle of ugliness continues.

I believe it’s about time we stepped forward to break this cycle and extend a warm welcome to every new person in our lives.

Let me end on a positive note. There are some lovely seniors out there, ever so ready with a friendly gesture, a helping hand, and to them I say kudos! You are spectacular examples I would love to follow. And it is these few that shine as a beacon of hope for those of us struggling to fit in. And for that, we love you. You have our respect.