Don’t sweat the small stuff
March 18, 2026 7:52 PM
“Now, if you two don’t mind, I’m going to bed before either of you come up with another clever idea to get us killed, or worse, expelled!”
“She needs to sort out her priorities!”-Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley.
Quite right you are Ron! However as absurd and humorous as the above example is, the sad truth of that matter, is that many of us(myself included) have last any sense as to what our true priorities should be, and are simply not keeping things in perspective of the bigger picture. More and more to me it seems that the things we focus on and consume ourselves with, are really not worthy of our attention given by our already overloaded and stressed out minds.
The recent elections for house President and VP’s and various other councilor representatives was a prime example of this. While reading the platforms for the various candidates, it was sad to see at the top of some people’s agenda’s things such as “more wild parties!”, “putting to better use our new speakers”, and “increasing our funds for house decorations”. Is that honestly what’s most important to you?
For some of you the answer may be resounding yes, but really think about it first. What will produce an overall more positive experience here in university? Will someone who gave you one more jungle themed party really make a difference at the end of the day? Or will it be someone who can create a positive environment every day, and bring out the most potential of those he/she represents?
Now, by no means am I against any of the above suggestions (the more wild parties the better!), but to base an entire election platform around something as superficial as that is quite simply ridiculous. It was very refreshing to come across other groups and individuals who were more in tune with the true concerns of the students who they will represent (inclusiveness, transparency, awareness, house pride, etc.), whilst still incorporating the elements of fun which create the X experience.
It seems that our lack of priorities and perspective has started to affect our health as well, on the smallest and largest of scales. On a person to person level, the typical student has now become accustomed to their amount of meals being decreased. Many of us now get buy on one a day during particularly stressful times, sacrificing food for another day and night of drinking, partying, studying and writing. I myself have sometimes (currently) fallen into a routine of no sleep for consecutive days on a regular basis, while eating nothing more than a coffee and muffin over that time. Bloodshot eyes, dizziness, insomnia, starvation and weight loss, all for getting a few more study hours in.
Finally, on the largest of perspectives, we can turn to what is becoming a greater and more terrible disaster by the day in Japan. After the terrible 9.0 earthquake and the enormous tsunami, we are now also on the verge of the greatest nuclear disaster since Chernobyl, with the Fukushima nuclear plant. Presently radiation is believed to be spreading through the air from five damaged reactors, as panic spreads from the smallest towns to the capital of Tokyo.
You may assume that this would be the top discussion point in our world today. However, a quick glance at the current trending topics on Twitter worldwide show no sign of anything relating to the disaster which has claimed thousands of lives, instead being replaced with tweets of Rebecca Black’s song Friday (which seat will she take?!), and the NFL lockout. That is just sad.
Maybe it’s time we all had a wakeup call to what is really important. Don’t get rid of all the fun and amazing times we desire to have, just try to remember what really matters at the end of the day, and keep sight of the bigger picture. Or maybe my sleep and food deprived mind has gone insane. If that’s the case, ignore everything I just said.
