Browsing: Editorials

You may have noticed over the weekend that the sun started to set around 5:30 p.m., and afternoon turned into the dead of night in the blink of an eye. Even though winter won’t be upon us until Dec. 21, the end of daylight saving time marks the beginning of the darkest months of the year. From now until mid-March, many may struggle with seasonal affective disorder, also commonly referred to as seasonal depression.

Yes, it is relieving to relax and turn your brain off, but don’t forget you’re a guest wherever you’re staying — even if it’s home. Leaving for holiday breaks, you may be excited not to worry about a sink full of dishes or which roommate is going to take the trash out. That being said, be prepared to pitch in and help where possible.

Election Day is just around the corner, and as college students, it can be challenging to find a convenient location to turn in a ballot. Luckily, Baylor sought to relieve some of the stress of student voting by installing a voting site in the Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center on Nov. 7.

At this point in the year, the combination of academics, work, internships and other school-oriented responsibilities can leave students swamped, and the light at the end of the tunnel can seem to grow frustratingly dim. Seasonal affective disorder is also coming into full swing, and it hits some people harder than others. While seasonal depression often requires more in-depth treatment, giving yourself plans to anticipate can certainly serve as a way to cope with the winter blues.

It’s no secret that politics is a black hole of economic jargon and social nuances. Yet, for some reason, college students are expected to magically have their views all figured out at 18. Tack it onto their to-do list, right after choosing a major and determining what line of work will fill the next 40 years of their lives.

As college students, there is pressure to base your future on the career of your choice. While it may sound cliche, a more fulfilling way to navigate the next phase of life is by establishing and maintaining strong relationships.

While we’re not telling you to shun all social media trends that are cute and funny or to look down on others for liking reality television or romantic comedies, it’s important to examine the implications of trends like the Roman empire, “girl dinner” and “girl math.”

This is not something that can or should be reduced to a single repost in support of Israel or in support of Palestine. People are dying. Violence is ongoing. Having tunnel-vision on one opinion or another and making this about taking sides is insensitive. Violence to this extent is wrong, no matter what.

Remember, you’re the author of your own happiness. It’s no one else’s job to make your day more fun — only your own. So, if you find yourself growing to despise the humdrum of the daily grind, don’t let the negativity and boredom take over. Create a little game, task or challenge to keep yourself entertained.

Especially at a rigorous school like Baylor, it’s easy to constantly compare yourself to your peers. Maybe you feel like you shouldn’t speak up in class because you think your ideas aren’t good enough. Perhaps you pass up applying for cool opportunities because you think your resume isn’t competitive. But the reality is that you have just as much to contribute as anyone else. Be confident in your own abilities, and know that there is a reason why you are exactly where you are.

Picture this: You’re in a Zoom meeting with an adviser trying to figure out what to study in college, suddenly realizing that this one small and seemingly insignificant decision might make or break the next 50 years of your life. Wait — that’s actually how it felt, wasn’t it? Being forced to choose your major before having 20 years of life experience under your belt is scary, but it doesn’t have to be the end all, be all.

So, scrap the excuses. No, the flu shot doesn’t infect you with an active virus. And no, just because you happened to get the flu after getting the flu shot when you were 11 years old doesn’t mean it’s completely ineffective. A lot of myths circulate on the topic. Don’t jump on the uninformed bandwagon just because it gives you a one-way ticket away from a needle.

Maybe you’ve witnessed your roommate call their sister for the third time in one day. Perhaps you overheard a classmate talking about the care package they just received from their mom. It’s hard not to compare those kinds of interactions to our own family dynamics. Be mindful that families function differently — and that’s OK.

The term “self-care” is thrown around a lot in college and is often thought of as pampering and relaxation. Although these are great ways to show yourself love, sometimes the most basic form of self-care is attending to your physical well-being.

Next time you or your friends try to use the “I don’t like sports” excuse, keep in mind that football games are just as much a social event as they are an athletic one. They’re about green and gold outfits and cowboy boots, tailgates in Touchdown Alley and the communal walk across the bridge, constant Sic ‘ems and the Baylor Line.

According to the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, people between 18 and 34 years old make up almost 30% of deceased organ donations. As college students, it may seem like we’re invincible, but tragedy happens, and it’s important to be prepared. Becoming a registered organ donor doesn’t impact how you live; it just gives you the chance to help others after the fact.

It’s 9:05 a.m. on a Monday. You take your seat in your first class and get ready for at least three surface-level class friends to ask how your weekend was. But while you hear others rattling off the frat parties they went to, you have nothing to talk about except a movie marathon, homework and more than one late-night trip to the Grease Pit — and that’s just fine.

By the time you get to college, you’ve already heard all the typical advice like ‘don’t bring your whole wardrobe’ or ‘don’t skip class.’ But as the years go on, there are plenty of lessons you learn along the way. Here’s what members of the Editorial Board wish we had known about college.

With entry into university life comes plenty of new privileges for students, and the ability to vote is among them. For many Baylor undergraduates, the 2024 presidential election will be the first opportunity to put this power into play. However, what many students don’t realize is the buildup to the Nov. 5 Election Day has already started, and their chance to take action begins now.

It’s vital to recognize the true situation of the places you travel to and to support them in their times of need. While “The Valley Isle” is evidently famed for a gorgeous landscape that attracts visitors from all over the globe, it’s much more than just a popular tourist spot. People live there too.

Whether you liked the film or not, be a girls’ girl (or guy) and practice empathy for others. Build up the women, men and people around you, validate their experiences and learn from the gender-related hardships they may face.

Although we have our flaws, we are much more than a lazy group of kids, just give us the chance to prove it. Just like the older generations are learning to live in a modern world, we are also trying to live in a world that has no former teachers that had to deal with everything new that’s being thrown at us.

If a medication has physical and mental side effects that impact the daily lives of so many women, it’s time to normalize having more in-depth conversations about those symptoms and other options before prescribing. There’s a level of casualness when it comes to putting women on the pill.

Your time at Baylor will teach you many things. You’ll leave with a degree and a load of wisdom you never knew you didn’t have when you first arrived. Let one of those lessons be this — being on your own to a certain degree is a part of life. Independence is a good thing, necessary even, and doesn’t have to be a lonely feeling.

The alert felt more like a chilling reminder that our lives could have been at risk for a moment. It was also very concerning to notice the message contained unclear information about where the potential shooter even was, as there is no specific “ITS building” on Baylor’s campus.