Gustavus Love Confessions is our ultimate guilty pleasure. For many students, there is a love hate relationship with it, but it has arguably been the Facebook page which elicits the most chuckles and sighs of affection among our College’s student body.

While it may not have as many people following it as Overheard at Gustavus, the latter having roughly three thousand members to Love Confessions’ near one thousand six hundred likes, you often hear people on campus gossiping more about that hilarious devotion of love that was just posted about their friend.

Some submissions are serious, others an inside joke, some from a creepy guy with a shrine in his closet dedicated to you that he’s managed to hide from his roommate, and others just to boost a friend’s self esteem.

One notable attribute Love Confessions has kept over its existence is an ability to adapt. Anyone out there remember Humans of Gustavus? It was a page that started up last year, had a short run, and now has fallen into obscurity with no activity since April. Beneath the Crown seems to be a remake of that model on Humans of New York, but only time will tell if it lasts. Overheard at Gustavus lets people post a humorous quote, spread a message, or post a pretty picture of Christmas in Christ Chapel, but there is no novelty of anonymity.

“The ingenuity of anonymity and the continuous stream of new students keep it alive as it evolves, and while many out there may complain that it’s stupid or childish, deep down it’s probable they’ve indulged themselves by scrolling through the posts.”

It’s a brilliant yet simple tactic Love Confessions has had over the years. No one knows just who submitted a confession; they can make guesses, but they won’t truly know unless the confessor, well, confesses. Is it a secret admirer or creepy stalker? Is it a random friend pulling a joke?

Could it be someone just noticing a positive trait about you? Some of us have experienced all the scenarios, such as beings asked to go shirtless or wear a pair of moose antlers, though I don’t know who in the world would have gone through that scenario.

One change over the years is less and less posts about ‘dat ass’ and other such innuendos. A fair amount of innuendo is still posted, and a fair deal can be either funny or cute, but there has been an evolution of more sophisticated language to make a submission more impactful.

Of course, it can also depend on who the confession is about, such as a certain Clark Kent look alike who shall remain unnamed, though for anyone who’s had a post or posts about them, they’ve likely pondered on it to an extent.

Gustavus Love Confessions serves a wide array of purposes. It can be funny, provide an outlet to give a shout out to a crush, or make a dear friend feel good. The ingenuity of anonymity and the continuous stream of new students keep it alive as it evolves, and while many out there may complain that it’s stupid or childish, deep down it’s probable they’ve indulged themselves by scrolling through the posts.

In the end, however, it’s not Gustavus Love Confessions we love; it’s the students that make it what it is.

-Mason Kruize