Tripod Editorial:  Giving Ourselves and Each Other Grace 

Springtime at Trinity has always been one of the most looked-forward to aspects of the entire school year. There’s traditionally a sense of rebirth, as so often comes with holidays that fall around the just barely-warmer months of March, April, and May. This year however, it’s important to acknowledge fithat it is a little difficult to fully embrace this positive, energized, and optimistic outlook, and that is okay. It’s hard to turn a blind eye to the fact that students really aren’t showing up to ficlass, motivation to finish assignments is dwindling in what seems like record numbers, and even professors have been especially slow in their responses and communications. 

There are lots of reasons for this apparent campus-wide exhaustion and fatigue. We wouldn’t label the reasons as excuses for slacking, but instead, we should give ourselves a little grace. The world is in need of a little more grace, and the events around the globe over the past few months are evidence of this. Rattling off a list of everything that has happened, from multiple shootings in the past week alone to increasing destruction in Ukraine can be categorized as genocide. fiAs clarified in a March 13 New Yorker Op-ed by Philip Gourevitch, according to international law, genocide does not explicitly have to do with the enormity of the criminal acts carried out, but rather the criminal intent behind the acts. Last week, a Trinity professor looked to a map of Europe, and sighed. She looked back at the class, then back to the map, and uttered that she could not believe this was happening again. After pausing for her words to settle, the class let out a heavy sigh with her. This information fiis difficult to comprehend, and although it is information that may not directly affect your life, it obviously resonates. We’re allowed to give ourselves grace. 

When it comes to how you’re feeling inside the Trinity bubble, grace is, arguably, even more warranted. In line with last week’s editorial, there are obvious improvements that can and must be made to make our experiences at Trinity better. It’s apparent that students are aware of this, and awareness is a crucial step in the process. It can be hard to maintain a clear perspective when we have our heads buried in our own problems, and the greatest way to combat this is to focus one’s energy on matters outside of ourselves. It can be easy to preach that all you have to do is shift your focus, and much easier said than done. We by no means discredit how truly fidifficult it can be to bounce back after tragedy, loss, failure, or hurt. We have all endured hurt and loss this semester, we have all earned a period of grace. 

fiWe can go about finding grace for ourselves and others by reaching out and helping others. When we step outside of ourselves and our own daily routines, duties, and commitments to volunteer our time to others, we become part of something larger than just ourselves. There are outlets across campus to do exactly this. Students can get involved in clubs with others who share similar interests, volunteer to help other students by participating in the Writing Center, or even refer a friend to the counseling center to step outside of themselves. As the school year winds down to a close, it is a good time to consider going to a club meeting you kept meaning to make time for, or take fia few more minutes to finish eating lunch and chatting with your friends at the Bistro. We have all the time in the world to worry about our next moves, the next moves of those around us, and the uncertainty of what is to come. However, we also have a choice of what we dwell on, and how hard we are on ourselves during trying times. 

–KJN