When you walk around the beautiful campus of Michigan State University, you may be surprised to see hundreds of ugly signs surrounding any area with trees. These signs were put up at the end of last year to ban hammocking on campus. The hammocking community was distraught, and even more so to find that these signs have only increased in number since we’ve returned from the summer.

The reasoning behind the elimination of hammocks on campus is that they supposedly have been destroying the trees. I know nothing about trees, but I do know that specific hammock companies, such as ENO, create straps that are advertised as tree friendly. There are so many trees on campus that no two trees are being consistently overused. I’m not sure if we truly are harming any trees, but whether we are or not, I’m here to state the other side of it: we need hammocking back on campus.

It’s a community

Whether you’re in the hammocking club on campus or you and your friends meet up in the center will trees all around, hammocking has created a community. My church group would get together and lay in our hammocks under the stars while someone played the guitar and we all praised the Lord. Hammocks have become a part of our generation’s culture, with hammocking being used as a verb (even though it’s not technically a real word) and college campuses all over the states being covered in them. It’s an activity for a community to do, and it’s also a way to form your own community.

It’s how we get away from the stresses of life

The swinging motion of a hammock has been scientifically proven to reduce stress and relax the body. I worked at a special needs camp all summer, and almost every counselor brought a hammock because many of our campers with Autism, ADD and ADHD could lie in them for hours.

College is some of the most stressful years of our lives, with one out of four students experiencing some sort of mental illness (depression, anxiety, ect.) during their time at the university. When classes get tough and your stress levels are up, sometimes all you need is to relax in your hammock. Other college campuses, such as the University of Miami, have been known to put up hammocks around campus for their students during exam weeks as a way for them to relieve stress.

It’s a great place to study

The library can be overcrowded, the grass is uncomfortable, and a dorm room is just too distracting. I always found that I did my best studying in my hammock, cocooned away from the college atmosphere. Often times the fresh air of studying outside is a lot nicer than being cooped up in a small cubicle in the library. If I ever had time between classes, I would quickly strap up my hammock and get ahead in the reading for the day.

Hammocking was a part of our lives

There are no words to describe the love I have for my hammock. If you have never experienced hammocking before, then you probably think I sound insane. But for those of you who have been blessed enough to relax under the trees, then you know where I’m coming from. Michigan State has banned hammocking on campus. But what they don’t realize is that they didn’t just get rid of little pieces of fabric that hang between trees, they got rid of a community, a stress reliever and a big part of a lot of our lives.