To the Class of 2015:
Relax. Everything will be okay.
You're about to begin a new chapter in your lives, and it's going to be a doozy. Over the course of the next four (or five) years, almost everything you think, know, feel and believe in will undergo radical transformations that you can't anticipate nor truly prepare for. You will believe, beyond doubt, in one thing, then believe in something else entirely. You will change your major, life plan, sexual orientation and friend group at least five times each. You will travel the world, explore new and old ideas. You will meet some incredible people and wonder how others can be so cruel. In the coming months and years you will both fall in love and get your soul crushed you'll both care for and hurt those around you. This is okay.
So. I'm writing all of this under the premise that you, the doe-eyed freshman, are likely to accept as truth what I, the so-called experienced senior, has to say about life here. I suppose I hope this is accurate, but somewhat ironically, I understand the only real point I want to make in this letter is the opposite: Do not blindly accept anything here. Anything.
Socially, you're about to inherit 242 years of tradition and culture, biases and beliefs. Your enculturation as a student here has already begun, and I imagine you're learning quickly. DOC Trips, flair, the Salty Dog Ragall innocent, "zany" and (for most) fun things that push you outside your comfort zone and hopefully make you take yourself a little less seriously. Whatever. But then something interesting will happen as you start getting caught up in the hype. You will greedily consume some god-awful "freshman guide to the frat scene" or something equally abhorrent you start to define, analyze, classify those around you and begin to see where you might fit in. You accept that this kind of person is like that, people in this group do these things. Then you pick one and start learning.
Don't do this. Though Orientation may lead you to believe this place is perfect, magical even, it is not bad things happen, and people can be horrible. You will experience this. The good thing is that you are here now, and there is, as with each incoming class, a unique opportunity to not accept, but rather question and critique to be more open-minded and resistant to stereotype. Because it is not cool to be bigoted, and it will never be okay to touch someone without their explicit consent. Because it isn't okay to objectify others, and it isn't attractive to objectify yourself. Because it's too goddamn late in human history to be classist, racist, sexist or homophobic. Do not accept these norms and they can be norms some places on campus and do not learn from them. Be better than we have been; be yourself and be genuine. Question everything and accept nothing blindly.
Despite its flaws, I can confidently say that I am very glad I chose this place to call home for these four years. For every fault or messed up social dynamic, there is an incredible person to know, an interesting conversation to have, and a beautiful place to explore. I joined a fraternity and found better and more fascinating friends than I ever could have hoped. More importantly perhaps, I've met countless challenging, brilliant and hilarious people in just about every corner of campus from co-ed societies to classes, Tucker groups to the DOC, so many people here are fascinating human beings in their own right. To miss out on knowing them would be your greatest mistake.
To conclude, I will promise you two things: One, there will come a time when you hate this place. It is not perfect and neither is any other place on this great big planet. Don't sweat it. Eventually you will find people who care about you not for what house you're in, not for how much money you have, but for who you are and have the potential to be. It will be them you love. Two, if you unquestioningly accept how things are here, if you do not challenge norms and do not follow your own path, not only your time here, but this place in general, will suffer.
Some traditions should fail, life always goes on, don't take things too seriously.
Good luck. We'll be watching.
