Please allow me the somewhat-overused privilege of relating a brief anecdote before I make anything resembling a valid point. Recently, while I was waiting for a bus to take me to my apartment, a complete stranger began talking to me. I am so accustomed to the traditional bus stop etiquette which is so rampant at N.C. State.

Everyone waits silently, unless they are with someone they already know. There can be 60 people waiting for buses, and no one is talking or making eye contact for fear, I can only assume, that they will be forced to acknowledge the presence of their fellow bus-hopefuls.

Familiar as I am with this rather bizarre-looking crowd of deadly silent impatience, I did not even turn around the first time the stranger spoke to me. I automatically assumed that he was speaking to a known associate, but then I heard him speak again, with no one answering him.

I turned to see why his companion was so rudely ignoring him when he was obviously trying to strike up a conversation, and I found him looking at me. I then proceeded to respond to his pleasantries, and we passed the time waiting for the bus chatting as only complete strangers can.

After he left I remember feeling very surprised that someone that I didn’t know and that I would, in all likelihood, never see again took the time to initiate a chat with me. Normally, the awkwardness of initiating a chat with a total stranger is reserved for cases of hitting on someone or making a study buddy in a class.

Then I began to be surprised by my surprise. Why shouldn’t students talk at bus stops, or anywhere we are together and bored, for that matter? Most students at N.C. State are undoubtedly as accustomed as I am to walking around all day, just going through the motions, perhaps even listening to their Technicolor iPods to make interaction between students seem highly discouraged if not impossible.

But I wonder if this lack of interaction is a hindrance to fostering a real sense of community on a campus which is nearly overwhelmingly large. It’s so easy to just turn on autopilot and keep your head down around campus. I know I’m guilty of it almost daily.

However, enjoying a five-minute conversation at a bus stop, or in line at the Atrium, or wherever you find other bored students, can really break up the monotony of a day which is otherwise painfully routine.

N.C. State would really benefit from more camaraderie between students, a little friendliness goes a long way; and with it being so easy to smile at people you make eye contact with and make sure doors don’t close on the person behind you, there’s really no reason not to try.

I told a relatively long story here to illustrate what a big impression a few nice words from a stranger can make in the day of a busy and flustered college student. Several days later and I still appreciate the efforts of a complete stranger to make a connection with another student at a college where anonymity is the rule and reaching out seems at best unpopular and at worst mildly suspicious.

So, if you are looking to improve your day, how about making an effort to share more of it with your fellow students? You could find that, aside from fostering a stronger sense of community on campus, that you have made yourself a few friends. Even better, it will give you a chance to practice talking to complete strangers in case you choose an exciting career in telemarketing, and at the very least, it will help pass the time waiting for the bus.

Do you plan to talk to someone new? E-mail your thoughts to [email protected]