Dear Gustavus,
We are a hurting community. We are hurting in our personal lives, in our student organizations, and as a whole community. It is OK to feel hurt; it reminds us that we are still human and that we are passionate beings.
However, it is what we do with this hurt that can only bring about healing. If we sit around and discuss with our friends how offended and hurt we are, but never talk to the other side, we continue to hurt ourselves. If we continue to be “Minnesota nice” or as I like to call it, passive aggressive, we avoid face-to-face-conflict and suddenly posting things on the internet and painting hateful messages on the rock becomes OK.
We are caught in world full of misunderstandings. We are very good at talking at each other, but both sides need to learn to listen in order to heal. What would happen if we confronted our hurt and the individuals who have hurt us? Would we be able to agree to disagree and treat each other with respect? All it takes is a little bit of courage. Do we have that Gustavus? We have been acting like cowards.
Amanda Hochstatter ‘11
My impression is that you’re saying Gustavus’ recent spike in internet publicity is an act of cowardice because it should have been resolved “face-to-face.”
But to this I must ask like I did another young lady, if direct, intentional, eye- to-eye speech is the best form of mature communication, why are you writing in a newspaper and on the internet as well?
I suppose your choice of expression and use of weekly.blog.gustavus.edu then means you realize that the use of social media does not reflect a posture of cowardice for what you believe to be true about the world, but a matter of convenience and a way to communicate with an audience.