Written by Emma Grosskopf
Age is just a number, baby.
God, I feel creepy just saying that.
And is it even true? Especially in college, where everyone appears to be close in age, but yet there seems to be a chasm between their levels of emotional maturity?
If we strip it down and look at it from a base level, most of us, give or take a handful, are close in age, between 18 and 23 (I took the liberty of calculating that for you math-allergic types: five years).
The question of the day is, is five years too many?
No one would say anything if a 35-year-old was dating a 30-year-old. That’s fairly normal, right? But throw everyone onto a small campus like RC and give them class rankings, and all of a sudden the lines are blurred. Is it okay for a senior to talk to/hook up with/date a freshman? Is it weird?
Should it be?
Not that my opinion is Gospel, but here’s what I’m going to tell you.
Everyone has needs. Emotional needs, mental needs and physical needs. If you can find someone to fulfill those needs, then age shouldn’t matter.
Personally, I believe that the level of emotional maturity changes drastically between coming in as a freshman and sitting in seminar as a senior, but that isn’t to say that seniors are always more mature. They have a little more life experience, and definitely more college experience, but that doesn’t necessarily make them worldly and wise.
Freshmen definitely have more energy, that’s for damn sure. I can’t keep up with the energy of some of these freshmen. I’m tired just looking at them. But these freshmen seem to have less pressure on their shoulders, be less stressed and know how to have a little more fun.
Why wouldn’t they?! As a senior, I can tell you that my days consist of sweating profusely, taking naps when I can, calling my mom and complaining about my stress levels and trying not to think about graduation. Of course I’m not having as much fun.
Obviously, that could just be me. Especially with the sweating.
We all know that communication, consent and safety is key in every relationship, no matter what that relationship may be, but all I’m saying is that for seniors, a freshman counterpart (whether it be a friend with benefits, a significant other, or a I-don’t-know-what-we-are) might be just what we need add some spice to our bland, high-pressure lives. What’s wrong with a little fun?
