Whispered Musings

It was difficult not to be immediately drawn in by the colorful streamers and eloquent speeches made by the student organizations during recruitment week. Displaying their various perks and benefits like a peacock displaying it’s fan of feathers; each group desiring to best the other by luring in as much freshman as possible. The incessant flaunting they kept shoving under my nose irked me; it felt too much like a market place rather than a well-respected college. I was no longer willing to be part of this charade.

It was difficult not to be immediately drawn in by the colorful streamers and eloquent speeches made by the student organizations during recruitment week. Displaying their various perks and benefits like a peacock displaying it’s fan of feathers; each group desiring to best the other by luring in as much freshman as possible. The incessant flaunting they kept shoving under my nose irked me; it felt too much like a market place rather than a well-respected college. I was no longer willing to be part of this charade.

The shallow competition left me with such disgust that I was well prepared to leave the square when I suddenly caught a glimpse of it. Like a moth drawn to a flame, I treaded lightly on the stone path as if in a trance.

The sound of my feet on the cobblestones was the only sounds I could hear as I approached the booth labeled “Poetry.” It was then that my previous thoughts immediately seemed so trivial. Despite running the risk of being called a hypocrite to my own mind, I just didn’t care. I knew I was meant for this, who could resist the enticing words whispered by the Muses? To be part of a guild dedicated in the artful tapestry of verse was too persuasive to leave behind. Since my early years, I had always been an enthusiast of literature. Only the tricks of time had made me forget that.

On the way back to my college quarters I praised and scrutinized my surroundings with a critical eye. I saw more than I did the year I came here, I saw the strife and joyous occasions. How could I have not seen it before, I vowed that I would never forget. I watched the sun set with renewed vigor and hope. 

- Jose (Isabelle Ocier 072487)