Last year, it snowed on Thanksgiving.
This anomaly was adored for a cornucopia of reasons: It made the holiday seem more special, brought us closer to Christmas and was pretty to look at.
Same goes for White Christmases — people love the idea so much that they’ll watch movies and sing songs about it.
But a snowy Halloween? Forget it.
Fury about the flurries overtook topics of conversation and Facebook newsfeeds, as individuals ranted about how this ruined their “Halloweekend” plans.
It seems as though we are fans of the fluffy stuff only when it works in our favor.
Students savor snow days yet classify it as a waste when weekend snowstorms don’t affect class cancellations.
Instead of making the most of Mother Nature’s miracle and building Snow Frankensteins last Saturday, the majority complained — “Why couldn’t this have happened Monday?”
This mindset seems slightly selfish to me.
While we tend to relish any chance to have a day off, there are children in other countries who aren’t as fortunate and actually wish for the very opposite — the opportunity to go to class.
No need to cue Sarah McLachlan music or show pictures of crying kids to tug at your heart strings: This isn’t a moral lesson meant to vilify those of us who would rather sip hot chocolate in our PJs than listen to lectures.
Rather, I think pretty highly of the human population — specifically the College community — and believe we have potential to do good in the world, particularly right here on campus or in the local community.
For instance, College alum and former NBA player Greg Grant’s afterschool program at the Hedgepeth-Williams School in Trenton (mentioned on page 15) could always use more volunteers.
A few hours spent helping the Bonners could make a big difference in encouraging these kids and emphasizing the importance of education.
Another College graduate to advocate for academics is Tammy Tibbetts, a former Signal staffer who was inspired after traveling to Liberia and spending time with the country’s schoolchildren. She founded She’s The First, a nonprofit organization that sponsors girls’ education in developing nations to help them be the first in their families to graduate.
Since one in four girls in the developing world is not in school and 70 percent of the 130 million uneducated youth worldwide are female, Tibbetts’ belief is that giving a girl an education is the first step in allowing her to pursue her dreams.
On this note, I might as well say that in support of this cause, members of Her Campus TCNJ, Theta Phi Alpha sorority, ED@TCNJ and W.I.L.L. are hosting a cupcake sale in the Student Center during Meal Equiv on Nov. 8, where all funds will go to She’s The First. As an organizer of the sale, this may seem like a shameless plug, but it’s for a selfless cause.
Speaking of selflessness, though most of us have jam-packed schedules, the time we spend on our computers (updating our Facebook statuses to complain about the weather) could instead be used to help worthwhile causes.
So go ahead and sprinkle some positivity in the lives of others — it’s sure to warm your spirit, despite the cold weather.
