Back in 2009, there was a popular song that came out called “I love College” by Asher Roth. The first two lines of the chorus are “I love college, I love drinking…” Back then I thought it was funny, as if alcohol and college were supposed to go together. Then I came to college and it became clear, they kind of do go together. Not always in a good way.

The legal drinking age is 21, that is common knowledge to all of us by now. As a Cal Poly student, we have all been
educated on the signs of alcohol poisoning and the danger of the damage we can do to ourselves. That being said, there is definitely a way to drink safely and in moderation, this school has made sure to teach us that after the death of a student back in 2009. I can understand that all of us come from different backgrounds and everybody is into different things, there is really nothing wrong with that. The only thing that I think there is something wrong with is that last weekend, my parents were here for parents weekend and it was fantastic to have them here. The problem came when in the space of about twenty minutes, three different ambulances passed us along the main street. My mom asked me if it happened often and I had to tell them it happens every weekend… starting on Thursdays.

Our lives are too fragile for this, we need to know our limits.

In a quote from Lauren Oliver’s Before I Fall, “If you cross a line and nothing happens, the line loses meaning…” I feel like too many of us are toeing a line that is too easy to cross, a line that might be too easy to blur. We are the next generation of adults, those who have the ability to innovate and change so much in this world. We just have to give ourselves the chance to and sometimes I’m not sure if we are. Even if I believe we deserve it.

In light of this idea, I wrote something about it— a poem of sorts just to get my thoughts on paper. So I wanted to share it with you all, it’s been a little while since I’ve shared a poem. I think this one has a lot to say about what we do with our lives and how it might look from the outside. Here it is:

Blurred Lines

She looked so peaceful lying there. You almost couldn’t tell what had happened that night.

Almost.

If an outsider were to walk in, to take a look at the beautiful brown haired girl asleep on the floor, they would think she was tired. That was it. Just tired.

They wouldn’t know that she was drinking hours before.

Too much.

They wouldn’t know she had gone too far.

They didn’t know that brown haired girl had almost accidentally killed herself.

But that happens doesn’t it? People take things too far.

They go just a little overboard.

Soon enough, just a little is too close for comfort.

That boundary gets blurred.

And that line gets crossed.

And there’s no going back.

Because what if there was no longer anything left of her.

What is she was too far gone.

Just a little too much to drink,

A step past overboard.

Because it happens, doesn’t it? She could have taken it too far.

She almost killed herself, but it was just an accident.

She had almost taken it too far,

Too close.

Because that was hours before, now she’s okay.

But let’s say she was just tired. That someone looking in wouldn’t know there was a difference between this tired brown haired girl, and a girl who was almost dead.

Almost.

Because she looked so peaceful, sleeping there on the floor. Almost as if I didn’t know exactly what had happened that night.

Tonight is the official beginning of Halloween weekend, a major party weekend for students around the world. I plan to have just as much fun as the next person this weekend, but I wanted to share a little something I wrote and in regard to this weekend and the chances some of us take with our lives. Whether you stay in to watch Halloweentown or go out to paint the town with some friends, I just hope everyone stays safe has a wonderfully Happy Halloween.