Life seemed pretty simple when I was 6. After I got over my childish 5-ear old dreams of becoming an astronaut, I finally settled on what I really wanted to be when I grew up: Zack Morris, the protagonist of the greatest show ever to be aired, "Saved by the Bell." I wanted it all: the overly gelled hair, the huge cell phone, the white high tops, the weird and under-utilized ability to stop time and, of course, an eventual Vegas marriage to Kelly Kapowski. Whenever I used to picture my future it could pretty easily be summed up by high school hijinx and afternoons at the Max. Pretty easy, right?
Over the years I've faltered, and never really lived up to the man - although I was called "Preppy" the other day, and I smiled a small smile of triumph. But I like to think that at least I had the opportunity. Life up to this point could have been "Saved by The Bell" - all the way from junior high to high school and beyond. Even here at Brown I could have followed Zack's path in the college years by gaining 30 pounds and a conscience - although I'm happy to say I have gained neither.
As students, we have a ton of free time, we are always surrounded by our friends and we all have the opportunity to do basically whatever we want whenever we want. Our lives have always had the potential to be like "Saved by the Bell."
But what happens after our our lives stop having all of the possibilities, the free time and the immediate availability of friends? What happens when we have to leave the world of "Saved by the Bell" and move on to the real world of "The Practice," "Moneyline," or "ER"? These are questions that many of us seniors are facing now, realizing that what we've been used to for so long isn't going to last much longer. As for me, I have no help from Zack Morris on this life changing transition. The Bayside gang never had to face these difficult decisions on TV, and in real life, half the cast is doing soft-core porn while the other half can triumphantly say that the highlight of their acting career was "Saved by the Bell: Hawaiian Style." Except for Tiffani-Amber Thiessen, one of the greatest thespians of our time (Kelly, I love you).
Now many underclassmen may be reading this and wondering why this at all applies to them. Many of you have at least 3 years until your next nervous breakdown and are still recovering from your, "Oh my God, I have to get into college" breakdown. But if you ask any senior on this campus, they'll tell you that these four years go by way too fast. We all remember freshman move-in day like it was yesterday, and you'll be in the same boat 3 years from now.
Life after college isn't anything to dread (OK, maybe a little) but it's something to understand and deal with. That's to say that first-years, sophomores, juniors, and especially seniors should be appreciating every moment of their remaining time living the student way of life. That doesn't mean that everybody needs to be asking themselves "What would Zack Morris do?" (although WWZD can get help you through some pretty difficult decisions). But it means that we all need to appreciate that what we have as students - free time surrounded by our friends, and a wealth of open possibilities - is an anomaly. This summer, as I finished up my summer job on Wall Street, all of my superiors said exactly the same thing: "You're going back to school, huh? One more year ... gee ... I would give my (insert body part here) to have one more year in college. Enjoy it, because it'll never happen again."
Appreciating what we have here at Brown means different things to different people, but I have some small tidbits of advice: If it's between staying in and doing nothing or going out with your friends, go out. If you want to take a road trip, but you're too lazy to get it organized, go on the road trip. If you're trying to choose between a class that sounds really fun and a class that you think will help you in your career, take the fun class. If you have a choice between doing the same old thing and trying something new, try something new. This may seem like simple advice, and I know that Brown students are smart and totally capable of making their own decisions, but often times, when faced with these decisions we make the wrong choice because we're lazy and we take our situation here for granted. So I guess the point is live it up, because it won't last forever. If you need me, I'll be out on the town, on a road trip to Vegas, or taking Ghanaian Drumming. If not, I'll be at the Max.
Adam Nelson '06 is so excited, he's so excited, he's so...scared.
