iPods ought to be called mePods. Nothing screams "leave me alone, I'm busy" more than a bundled-up student staring down a sidewalk, earbuds in, listening to some squeal of a song. To dining halls, DeBartolo and dorms we plod, sullen and impersonal faces on conveyor belt sidewalks. In truth, we plug ourselves in only to unplug ourselves from the world around us: we iPlod. It's a great virtue to be mindful of your surroundings, and what surroundings are more worthy of mindfulness than Notre Dame's? With white wires from our ears, don't we take for granted the sounds, sights and people around us? Do we want to graduate knowing that in ten-minute bouts of iPlodding we have taken for granted the Golden Dome, neglected to hear the pianos playing from the Crowley Hall of Music or ignored a cute and interesting classmate walking right beside us? No, we want to graduate knowing that we've never missed a moment, especially one lost to K-Fed. We most likely iPlod for short-lived escapes from the daily grind. Or maybe iPlodders mistakenly think that they exude some nonchalant coolness. Regardless, I propose we do with a little less stimulation on this cusp of spring and beginning of Lent. As the snow melts and birds sing again, let's wholeheartedly open our ears and minds to all the extraordinary things and people around us. Maybe you're reading this in the dining hall right now, and maybe you're listening to music too. Pocket that pod and talk to the person down the table. I promise you won't regret it.
Tony Klausing
freshman
Keenan Hall
Feb. 27
