BY WALTER CANADY III

Passing time will never be the same, starting in September. If you haven’t noticed, the hallways have been ‘clogged up’ due to the amazing improvements happening to the south side of the building, and the administrational staff have made it a duty to make sure that students are not being stagnant in the hallways and often we are just being asked to not loiter and get moving to class. This was a good idea to help with the congestion; however, take it from a student’s perspective, we understand that the kissing, and the ridiculous fights that happen during these times are not right. But is this not part of every generations typical high school culture?

Honestly, I feel, being a senior, that the hallways are almost the best part of the day, for most at least. Walking into freshman year, it was always ‘cool’ to see the seniors, or upperclassmen, on one side of the hallway. Not just at Truman, but pretty much any high school and seeing those students set up like that is just another part of the high school culture, and when we weren’t one of those upperclassman standing over there on the wall we wanted to be.

I feel that every student, myself included, couldn’t wait until senior year arrived or they became an upperclassmen, because even in the movies being an upperclassmen had its perks. Whether it be a lunch table, football game seats, or simple things like hallway spots those were perks that we looked forward to. So for us seniors, who shared this same feeling, it feels like ‘wow, why wait ‘til my year!’ And we understand that school, or passing time is not solely about social time, but I feel like at the same time though, our administrators have to understand and have empathy for just the teenage, high school culture. What some may not understand is that these high school walls are in its own way a little world. The hallways are what that one student thought about as she combed through her closet looking for anything that just might get her noticed and maybe even grab a compliment, and the hallways were the place that he tried to impress that one girl that he didn’t get lucky enough to have classes with.

Let’s say we weren’t worried about culture at all, just passing time in general, and what role it plays for our minds. Just two or three minutes from those five minutes can do a world of good as it gives each student’s brain a second to come down from it’s 100mph run because it’s been cooped up in a room, in a seat for 43 minutes each class, double that on Wednesday and Thursday. With that being said those two or three minutes are essential to the reboot or recondition of our mind and as foolish as it sounds, high school is a way bigger deal than just being there to graduate to begin with. Even for those of us who are not going to college, high school is still part of the ‘glory days’. And I can tell you now, there is no glory in rushing to class everyday. Sadly, it no longer feels like that same high school atmosphere that we’ve come to love since freshman year. At this point it starts to feel like a juvenile detention center, well not literally but they are very similar just because both are telling you when and where to be, when to leave, when to eat, when you can use the restroom. Now, I’m not suggesting that a place of education shouldn’t have rules and restrictions, but we don’t need to make a place of education feel so much like an institution, even though it is. Give us a chance to branch out for a second and you could be surprised with what you find out.

Walter Canady III and Craig Stewart also discussed this on the Weekends with Walt podcast.