Behind the Ivy: Think OChem is hard? Think again.

As witnessed by the thousands upon thousands of prospective, college applicants across the country on the colorful, professionally-printed brochures, there is an implicit promise universities and colleges, across the land of spacious skies and purple mountain majesties, are making, and it is one, big FAT lie. While I already am fortunate enough to have an established group of friends (including the ones who post on this blog, of course :)) back home, I honestly came to Cornell, aside from its academic prestige, looking to forge life-long friendships (on some level, at least) and foster personal growth simply as a result of being here.

To my dismay, the quality of friendships I have been pining for in a collegiate environment is far from reality. I have found myself entangled in three social circles, since the beginning of my journey in obtaining an Ivy League diploma that guarantees limitless opportunities and, for some, secures a chance at having a lucrative and socially-advantageous future. Being a part of three social circles isn't something that I'd exactly be proud of or gloat about; as a matter of fact, it demonstrates how the Cornell community itself and at large is so severely fragmented and, quite bluntly, as loose as Paris Hilton's gaping vagina after multiple sex-capades. There appears to be no common ground that glues the students together. When such gluing does occur, it is only limited to certain, social clusters that pervade campus-wide. Everyone seems to settle for convenient friendships with those in their immediate proximity. Case in point: Supposedly close friends I had last semester live in another residential house 5 minutes away from me, yet we no longer eat or hang out together. Our interaction with one another have been reduced to platitudinous greetings and farewells.

It saddens me greatly to think that I might have to cohabit with this dismal reality for the next two years. I don't think I can even begin to scratch the surface of this "Big Red" farce as to why people here are so seemingly incapable of confiding in each other and letting go of their inhibitions. While having coffee with my friend Caroline last night, she briefly mentioned in passing that there is this girl who would converse with her after their club meetings but would never proceed to make plans for future gatherings or express any interest in further developing their friendship beyond the level of being acquaintances. It struck me, at the moment of Caroline's revelation, that this is precisely the problem I invariably observe on the Cornell campus. On the one hand, it is easy to meet new people within the sizable student population; on the other hand, it is frustratingly difficult to maintain flourishing and faithful friendships.

Although Organic Chemistry is one of the toughest courses an undergraduate student can take, I believe there is a greater obstacle ahead that is more self-defeating and demoralizing than any class--and that is learning how to navigate the social anatomy of college life. I rest my case. Now share yours.