Tufts University - Jumbo Yearbook (Medford, MA)

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Photo Steve Mitchel College Expectations We all came to Tufts with expec¬ tations about college life. (Endless parties and a roommate who also slept with the window open seemed par for the course.) College was the place we would make the friend¬ ships that last a lifetime. It was to be the best four years of our lives. It all began on an early Septem¬ ber day when we got into our cars and took the traditional tour of the Medford Sommerville area before actually finding Tufts University. If you were lucky enough to arrive be¬ fore your roommate, you could chose the “better” bed, desk and closet. Meeting your roommate was only the beginning of endless con¬ versations consisting of: “Where are you from?”, “What did you say your name was?”, and “Do you know . . . ?” After a while you real¬ ized that it didn’t really make that much of a difference whether or not you knew. We were all just search¬ ing for some kind of link, some con¬ nection that would make being away from friends and family not all that scary. Dorm games were our first real social events which enabled us to meet the other anxious newcomers. Still, most of us were too nervous to really enjoy the activities, or too busy scoping out someone across the room. As orientation week progressed, friendships were formed while try¬ ing to demystify the block schedule, standing in line for meals, IDs, tele¬ phones, books, and doing just about everything else we would need to do inorder to begin our four years at Tufts. The so-called “honeymoon” of parties and meeting people as clue¬ less as you ended abruptly with the arrival of the upperclassmen to campus. It was then that we became conscious of our freshman s tatus. Only three short months ago we were at the very top of the totem pole, seniors in our respective high schools. Now we were at the bottom again, and this was all too apparent as we watched the upperclassmen return from summer break greeting old friends and easily directing us to any obscure point on campus. As Freshmen we were distinct and were easily spotted by our clothes with the tags freshly clipped, and saying “hello” to anyone who looked receptive. We could be seen going to or coming from at least one Eaton party during our Freshman year. We all went to them. It was where we practiced our scoping abilities and tested our courage by introducing ourselves to the person who caught our attention in the Pig Book. Officially, of course, we went “just to dance.” Regardless of how much we dreaded being freshmen , few of us would trade the special memories of that year for anything. Many would agree that we did most of our learn¬ ing about life that year. We all ex¬ perienced personal changes but freshman year was only the begin¬ ning of the our growing years at Tufts. by Elaine Cohen 18 Student Life

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