It is early in the morning and the air is crisp. It is slightly better when you sit in the sun, but the second the breeze returns you wish you were back in your warm bed. Students pass by, not in groups, but one by one. They pass with their heads down, as if to say that it's too early to speak to each other. A boy, no more than 19 years-old, sits down on the same bench as me. He is dressed in oversized sweatpants, as a way of protesting the need to be out of bed so early in the morning on a Monday; after what was likely an exciting weekend.
He has large headphones on, the kind that cover your ears and keep the outside noise out. But, his up-beat music quickly pierced the quiet air as he sat beside me on the cold metal bench. On another nearby bench, is a very juvenile-looking girl with an iced coffee in her hand. All while simultaneously tilting her head down, and shutting her eyes to get a last moment of rest before the hustle and bustle and chaos of the day begins. As time trickles on, more and more students pass by with their heads down and earbuds in. Most students have a warm coffee in their hand, some homemade and some store bought. Some kids are still in the “protest” sweatpants, and some are all dressed up with fancy shoes and a full face of makeup… Almost as if they were headed to a date, not a lecture.
As I arrived to the first lecture hall I would be in for the day, I sit towards the back of the room, beside another classmate. We don't talk, we just sit quietly sipping our warm drinks, reluctant to even open our bags -- as that signifies the start of yet another stress-free weekend gone. The lecturer, a young Chinese man new to the country, takes his place at the podium in the front of the room. As he speaks, I look out at the sparse crowd in front of me.
What started as 150 students, but became no more than 60 on any given day. Most every student had a computer or tablet in front of them, not to take notes, but to watch a movie or rush through other work they had neglected over the weekend. They probably don't even realize there's a class going on around them. But I’m no better, I have Netflix open and iMessage propped up on my computer right beside it. The lecture… No interest to me. My mind was fixated on when I would have time to sneak away from my day for another cup of piping hot black coffee, with a warm bagel and perfectly melted cream cheese. Or better yet… when I could just rest my eyes, even just for a second.
The class comes to a close, and students stagger out of the room, with just a bit more energy than they stumbled in with. But now there's a quiet chatter of the past weekend, and crazy schedules in the air. A new day has begun.
