When we are young, our parents and elementary school teachers instruct us on the basics. Share your toys, use your words, and treat people the way you want to be treated.
Somewhere along the way, those lessons seem to be either disregarded, or just put on the back burner until one has children of their own.
I would hardly call myself one of the easier people in the world to get along with. If I had to choose, I would probably refer to myself as obnoxious with a sharp tongue. However, I have to say that one of the most important lessons I've learned in college outside of the classroom has been the art of compromise.
I suppose predestination was a contributing factor in the equation. The elder child in my family, and the eldest in my extended family of cousins, I've always experienced the finer craft of negotiation, usually the hard way.
We would fight, declare our never-ending hatred for each other, apologize, and eventually make up. It was a vicious cycle, which usually ended in smiles once the credits rolled.
When I began my freshman year, UB showed me a new face to the art of grin and to bear it. You meet an infinite number of people in college. Some will become your closest friends for life, some will step in then fade away, while others you will completely and utterly despise and loathe being around.
More often than not, those people will be close to your best friends. I don't know exactly why this absurd irony is a constant in some people's lives, but it has definitely been an all to familiar scenario in mine. These people have either a personality that grates yours, "never have any money," or don't understand the finer execution of discretion and poise.
I learned that there are two ways to go about dealing with situations like this: you can be rude, catty, and thoroughly unpleasant, or you can bite the bullet and perform some exercises in civility. I'm not saying you should become best friends with them - or worse, marry them. What I'm saying is that people you don't like or particularly care for will be around you for the rest of your life.
When one graduates and begins their "adult" life, there will be unpleasant people at the workplace, in your book club, and if you're lucky enough, in your significant other's extended family.
My grandfather told me once that some people in life you can only say three things to: good morning, good afternoon, and good night. Not everyone is going to be your best friend or worthy enough of forging a lifelong connection with. Sometimes your relationship with a person can be summed up as "just whatever."
The last thing I am condoning, is for one to put their own personal beliefs aside and allow others to walk all over them in any scenario one finds themselves in. In as twisted and ambitious a world we live in, I urge this: pick your battles. Until then, biting your tongue and going along with what is best for the group never hurt anyone. The good fight can always come later.
