matthewnguyen

Uni Social Life

University and its social life is a very interesting thing. We can no longer place ourselves in small groups like we did in highschool with labels such as "Basketball Group", "Selective Group" and all. University is a social web governed by none. No spider can weave it, it's just chaos, too huge to handle while we as the droplets of water just travel around in the winds of change. Though this web is a collaboration of a variety of unique webs as your own university doesn't limit your social life to just that university. University social life is its own universe. It's own unpredictable entity.

I've mentioned this several times beforehand, but I'll say it once more. My social life in university as of my first year was completely dead. There is a difference between having a friend you can hang out with during breaks and a friend that is only your friend during the tutorial. I only had the latter for the whole of last year. It was pathetic really. I caged myself in the library talking to people on skype to alleviate my loneliness when I should've tried to socialise more. I have no one to blame but myself for this matter. Making friends in uni is not as easy as it seems.

There are obviously different types of people with different social capabilities. Shy people will not do great and outgoing people or those with determination will be able to do it. I am the former and that hasn't changed since I was born. I'm not afraid to admit that I am socially inept, but I have been trying to change for the better. There is nothing wrong with the friends I have now from high school. They have their flaws, but the fun I have with them and the intimacy which I share with some of them are treasured very dearly. I still treasure to this very day and for the days ahead. Talking to my friends, some have the same struggles as I do while others are doing very well for themselves.

Sitting next to a stranger is already nerve racking in uni for a few of us. We've been conditioned since high school to sit next to our friends who we feel comfortable around. And with the step which brings us to uni, not all our friends will be going to the same uni let alone do the same courses and take the same classes. Timetables will be different and the time we will spend with out high school friends will definitely decrease. Without a doubt. I've been hit the hardest in this context. Just because it seems like I am in the worst condition doesn't mean that I have to be the most miserable. I am positive that there are those who feel worse off than I do, wishing to start a new leaf away from their high school friends, but cannot due to the unseen chains shackling them to the ground of the past. Some people aren't even bothered to make new friends in general. Not because they're satisfied with their current ones, but because they just can't be bothered. And I understand where they're coming from. They don't see the importance or have not prioritised in social life yet.

It's not always a blessing to have a friend with you all the time. There are times where you wish to explore the world on your own, brave the wilderness and see what you can accomplish. I can look at my position in that light, but that is not the life for me. Not the life for others too. I miss my friends. But I've brought this upon myself with my grades. I have no right to regret. Only to blame and move on. There are no major groups in uni that I know of. Everyone has their own world in their clubs or friendship groups. Uni is just too big. I don't even know where to begin, where to delegate an end, the social life attainable in uni is just monstrous. But the social life that people choose is just a speck.