Spring brings good and bad habits

House Editorial

It’s spring again — a time for new growth, both good and bad. Outside, flowers are sprouting all around us, but intermixed with the flowers are the weeds. There are more activities to do in the spring, but just like the weeds among the flowers, there are good things and things that, in excess, can be detrimental.

No one can resist going outside when the warm sun is streaming through the windows. As the days get longer, more people spend more time outside. Motivation for outside workouts increases and running stops being so much of a chore and more of an enjoyment. All around campus, people are finding warm spots in the sun to soak up some rays and show off the skin that has been hidden under layers of sweaters and pants all winter. The Quad is full of sunbathers and Frisbee-throwers enjoying the warm air.

As the daylight hours increase, there is more time for outdoor activities. Even those with afternoon classes or day-long jobs can see the sun when they come out of the buildings. The warm, fresh air seems to beneift everyone. The depression that the long, cold winter months brought on is lifting and jackets are being traded in for t-shirts and smiles.

However, along with all the good things about spring comes the things that are bad for us in excess. Getting to a party isn’t so bad anymore with the warmer temperatures, the bus stop is packed again and not just with people huddling together to stay warm. The walk home later that night or the next morning is easier too. It’s not nearly as cold and therefore not as unbearable. While it can be very fun, it can also be bad when it becomes something that is done too frequently.

The warm weather also makes smoking easier and quitting so much harder. The winter makes quitting an easier option, because standing outside in the freezing cold to smoke isn’t something most people want to do.

The warm weather also makes it much more tempting to skip class and procrastinate. How can someone turn down an afternoon outside to sit inside and listen to a professor drone on about the benefits of antibodies in humans? And that paper that needs to be done probably won’t be done in the middle of the afternoon when there is time available, but rather completed in the wee hours of the night in order to enjoy more of the day.

Despite the bad habits spring can encourage, spring should be a time to start over and put all of those habits behind us. It is a time of positive new growth — a time to kill the weeds of bad habits that might be growing among the flowers.