Ghosts are coalescing on home porches and skeletons are dancing on the lawn; Halloween is coming. Yet, between exams and essays, Andover students often fail to notice the developing festivities across campus. However, the board believes that, between exams and essays, festivities like Halloween actually hold a necessary place in an Andover student’s life. Though our lives may be busy, it is just as important to remember we are still kids and reconnect with our childhood selves.
Typically 18 when kids first leave home, most Andover kids leave home years earlier at 14 or 15. It is difficult for a student that age to be thrown into an unfamiliar environment where everyone suddenly feels mature and grown up. It’s all too easy to fall into that culture of hyper-independence. However, the fact remains that Andover students are still teenagers, still kids. Kids are silly; they play. Kids aren’t workaholics; they don’t obsess over schedules. Being independent and responsible are necessary for success at Andover, but being able to relax and enjoy yourself is just as critical. But students often forget about the latter. Becoming consumed by academic performance and extracurriculars is unsustainable, flipping work-life balance upside down.
Participating in the highest level of academics, sports, arts, and more, all while living by ourselves is certainly not the normal teenage experience, but, for one night this term, we have permission to be a kids again. Halloween is the perfect opportunity to let go and have fun. It gives us a reason to dress up, assume a fictional persona, and escape boarding school stress. Just as your five-year-old self was given the opportunity to fly or cast spells, Halloween gives us the opportunity to fly away from our sizable workload.
Committing to the process of having fun requires more than just showing up, it requires a willingness and positive mindset. By engaging on campus activities and events with an open heart and mind you allow yourself the opportunity to be fully present in the moment. A positive attitude shouldn’t only enhance your experience, but those around you as well. It may feel difficult to adopt this positive attitude when the time-consuming event is eating into the limited amount of time in each day to study, but they are made specifically for us to de-stress. In the spirit of halloween, gather your dormmates and decorate the dorm, plan an over-the-top group costume with your friends to go to then dance in, actually try to haul yourself all the way to Abbot for Abbotween. These events could only take around 15 minutes of your life, but those 15 minutes can be the breath of fresh air you needed to hit reset. School-organized events, even for just a few minutes, can act as a stress reliever and a chance to go out and be with friends for a little. You only have so many Weekenders to get through, treat yourself to some time away from all the studying and worries.
It can feel disorienting at first, using the hours in the day for relaxation rather than studying. But don’t feel guilty for taking time for yourself. But it’s unhealthy to be constantly bombarded by assignments, deadlines, and unexpected outlook chimes. You’ve done enough, take a break and enjoy it.
