Page 4 — LIONS EYE - November 18, 1998 Opinion & Review Kindness Is Important: Practice the Golden Rule By Jenna Montgomery Lion's Eye Staff Writer Anne Herbert coined the phrase, “Practice random acts of kindness and senseless acts of beauty” in 1982. Since then we’ve seen stickers adorn car bumpers and heard mention of the best-selling book, Random Acts of Kindness. : Originally begun to counterbalance “random acts of violence,” the goal of this movement is to reverse the tide of anger and violence in our society by deepening our connection with others through the practice of simple, day-to-day kindness to our fellow humankind. : | As Princess Diana said, “Perhaps we’re too embarrassed to change or too frightened of the consequences of showing that we actually care. But why not risk it anyway? Begin Today. Carry out a random act of seemingly senseless kindness, with no expectation of reward or punishment. Safe in the knowledge that one day, someone somewhere might do the same for you.” Small acts have exponential growth potential. They are within everyone’s reach; time, energy and resources do not have to be bountiful. Kindness allows the positive side of the human condition to surface. Kind words and kind deeds inspire others to act likewise. Even people who wit- ness a kindness will act in the same manner. Kindness begets kindness. Far too often people avert their eyes as they pass a stranger in the halls or on the street. By making eye contact and smiling as you say “Good morning, how are you?” the bridge is politely gapped. So start today and do a good deed with no strings attached. Even simple courtesies, such as holding open a door for someone, dropping a quarter in an expired meter or letting a driver merge, make a difference. Kindness has a ripple effect ; By thinking more on a daily basis about being kinder to one other, kindness will become “sustained” rather than “random.” Best of all, being compassionate to others is an act of humanity, which satisfies both you and the object of your kindness. As Ranjeet Singh said, “Kindness is within us. It is up to you to keep it or share it.” Penn State Must Seriously Consider Having Fall Break ‘By Sarah Stover Lion's Eye Staff Writer I don’t know about everyone else, but with my hectic schedule and trying to balance both work and school, mid-term exams were the last thing that I wanted to deal with. Unfortunately, the professors give them anyway, so I was stuck cramming for them till four in the morning the night before. Finals, in a lot of ways, are so much easier to handle than midterms because they are the last, FINAL test for that class, and then we all get to enjoy our long winter break. With mid-terms, however, there is no definite closure with work, and I don’t know about you, but my midterms were all spread out over the course of two weeks. This is a formula for disaster. While I might be cramming for one mid-term, I'll have a huge report due in another class and the same day an essay in literature is due. Instead of being able to focus on just mid-terms, I have to add the mid-terms to everything else. This is enough to make anyone insane. Being forced to juggle both mid-terms and a full work load is just too much. And we all know how much the mid-terms count for in a grade, so you can’t afford to do poorly. So, with this in mind, I pose a question. Why doesn’t Penn State consider a fall break? Many other colleges/universities in the area have them, and they would reduce the stress of mid-terms. Like the finals, this break would give students the extra time they need to catch back up with -work after the mid-terms and to relax. A break would also, hopefully, curve the mid- terms down to a one week period, so students could be more focused on doing well on the mid-terms without having to concentrate on other assign- ments as well. Professors would also be forced to give the mid-terms within a stricter schedule — that is, before the break. So, all the tests would have to be taken and be over with by the time students return. Doesn’t that sound nice? And the fall break itself is usually only two days attacked to a week- end; just enough time to recover from the mid-terms. I have friends that attend universities that have these fall breaks, and they tell me that they really are a big and needed help. If Penn State would only consider this proposition and perhaps try it out, I think they would find a positive response from both the professors and the students. | Jappy Dy LM SADD Ghost Day Made This PSU Student Very Happy By Amy M Hurley Lions Eye Staff Writer Even though I joked with friends about the riot in State College this summer and the nationwide publicity it received, the whole incident made me seriously question whether or not I was still proud to be a Penn-State student. Even after the news stories stopped appearing on CNN and in the newspapers, I still had intermittent bouts of shame and regret that the issue of binge drinking had been personalized to my university by the unthinking acts of one part of the student body. That was until about two weeks ago on the Thursday before Hallow- een when Penn-State Delaware County held a SADD Ghost Day; every 32 minutes a volunteer “died” by painting his/her face white and not speaking to anyone to signify those killed everyday by drunk drivers. The turnout of “ghosts” really impressed me. While I worked out in the gym, one “ghost” walked by me and I thought about whether or not I would have the guts to paint my face up like a mime and walk around school all day in silence. I decided that just the silence part of it would be too much for me. This made me respect the “ghosts” even more. All of the sudden, I felt something I hadn’t felt in a long while, a wave of Penn-State pride. So, I write this in hopes of, in some small way, publicizing the posi- tive efforts of a few Penn-State “ghosts” that not only succeeded in raising awareness of drunk driving, but also restored my pride in being a Penn-State student. 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Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers