High, Low, Rhino
Writer: Izzy Patrizio
Editor: Sarah Lindquist
Photo taken by: Izzy Patrizio
As a college student, it's easy to get caught up in the “big picture.” Even at home, the question is always, “How are classes going?” or “What are your plans for the future?” These questions—and life itself—can feel all consuming, but remember: it is going to be okay. I always tell myself, just take a deep breath.
These questions can be a lot more daunting than anyone intends them to be, but that doesn’t invalidate the feelings they result in. No matter what, we cannot let these questions take away from the journey we are on. College is about a lot more than having our entire futures planned out. When I first came to Northeastern, everything was new, and overwhelming, and when you add the stress of these questions onto it, I was set up to burn out real quick. Something about being so far from everyone I have ever known made me long for a connection to my past traditions. Missing home, and longing for a break from people asking me what I wanted to do with my life, I decided to introduce my friends to something my family and I used to do at the dinner table.
High, Low, Rhino has become a staple at all of our “family” dinners. While I am sure the idea of a high and low of your day is self-explanatory, what throws everyone off is the Rhino. Once someone shares the best part of their day and the maybe not so nice part, they share a random thing that happened. This could be a funny interaction with one of our campus celebrities, a stupid thing one of us did that day, or even some exciting update on something shared the previous night. I’ve heard this called a thorn or a valley, but I personally like rhino the best. The word is as random as what it represents.
Traditions like these give us all a chance to reflect on our day, but also connect and stay in touch with our friends who we don’t see a lot throughout the day. After I take a second to think about my day and what the best parts of it were, I feel a weight off of my shoulders, and I am able to revel in spending quality time with the people I love. It gives everyone a moment to reflect, laugh, and is a wonderful reminder to take things one day at a time.
It felt silly at first, but now we all miss it when we forget to share or don’t have enough time. There is something special about being able to focus on the little things that happen in our everyday lives and it helps prevent us from getting overwhelmed by those big questions that haunt us.
I feel so much closer to my friends when I get to hear about the random things that happen to them during their day/week. We have so many stories that we all know about and reference because we heard about them at dinner while sharing.
College can feel like an endless series of big stressful questions but its the little things that keep us grounded. Take care of yourself, ask silly, small questions, and remember that the people we have in our lives are what can make the difference between a good and great day. Appreciate the highs, recognize the lows, and laugh at the rhinos, life doesn’t need to be as serious as it feels all the time.
