Bella Loxtercamp – Opinion Columnist

It’s fall, y’all, and I don’t know about you, but I have been Stressed with a capital S. Midterms are over, but we’re still in the thick of things. Club meetings, papers, tests, projects, classes, work, eating, socializing, sleep, and it goes on and on and on, yeah. I throw my hands up in the air, sometimes mid-way through writing my second paper of the day, sometimes studying a concept I still can’t quite understand. Maybe it’s the stress that’s making me feel nostalgic, or maybe it’s all the Weekly articles about Pillow Pets and old TV shows, or maybe it’s just the fact that summer is officially coming to an end. Whatever the cause, all I want to do right now is trick-or-treat, roll around in a leaf pile, and watch cartoons till the turkeys come home.
There seems to be a general belief among most of the adults I encounter that young adults should be leaving behind their inner child and embrace the adult world with open arms. While I understand the need to take on more responsibility, why does this mean we need to abandon activities that bring us joy? What gives people the right to judge others for what they do? I carefully nourish my inner child. I love playing on playgrounds, building with Legos, trick-or-treating, playing in the rain, making snowmen, impromptu snowball fights, watching cartoons, coloring in coloring books and more. Many of the activities done by children are creative, expressive and freeing. These are all especially important when the assignments I do rarely fall into those categories, yet, for me, being able to have a creative outlet is so important.
I feel judgment, not usually from my peers, but from adults, when I do these things. Maybe it’s just a generational difference, but what’s so bad about these activities? They’re fun and relaxing. Playing on the playground, for example, reminds me of the freedom of being a child, flying on the swing and jumping off at the highest point. Coloring gives my brain a break from the difficult assignments that require critical thinking and problem solving. I usually only play in the rain leaf piles with my nephew, but even then, it’s physical activity and gets me outside. In my opinion, adults could use more childish activities in their lives.
This fall, get in touch with your inner child. Dress up for Halloween. Watch all the Halloween movies you watched as a kid–Monster House, Coraline, Spooky Buddies, and It. Perhaps more controversially, go trick-or-treating if you want to. Free candy, getting to know the community of St. Peter. I also highly recommend going to the arb, finding a quiet, secluded space, laying on a blanket, and just observing–the sky, the colorful trees, the crazy squirrels. You can bring your homework out there, too, but be sure to take some time to do nothing.
Walk in the grass instead of the path on your way to classes and enjoy the sound of dried leaves. Drink hot apple cider, go to Sever’s Fall Festival and go to the Halloween events on campus. I think the best part of Halloween and fall is being allowed to reintroduce ourselves to our more childish side. Also great is the excuse to willingly participate in scaring ourselves, like in the Haunted Arb Walk, Valley Scare, and Dead End Hayride. It’s a good way to see how long we would survive in a horror movie. I’m pretty sure I would die within the first twenty minutes–I’d be the one who wanders off in the woods, trips on twigs, investigates the sound, splits away from the group, screams so loud it alerts the monster of my presence. Maybe I’d survive slightly longer in an older horror movie, but I don’t think I have what it takes to survive very long in a new horror movie. I can hardly watch them without passing out from fear.
Personally, I prefer either animated horror movies for children such as Spooky Buddies or old horror movies where the graphics make it obviously unrealistic. While I see why others like the more terrifying horror movies, I’m too faint of heart to watch and enjoy them. Still, the possibilities for a good horror movie are endless, just like the possibilities for fall fun.