In the Trevian Spirit, many seniors will make their way over to Elder Beach today and perform the New Trier tradition of smoking cigars to celebrate graduation.

It is a tradition that, according to students past and present, has spanned generations.

Like all traditions, we seniors hear about it, get excited to do it, and then experience it. But, also like all traditions, is it a true tradition, or an act of conformity?

Like everyone in the world, I am a slight conformist. I come to school dressed for the most part like all guys at New Trier.

I ditched on Senior Ditch day and went down to Wrigley to sit in the bleachers and watch the Cubs play. I wore the t-shirt of my college on May 1, I’m following the dress up themes for everyday this last week of school, and I will go smoke a cigar this Friday.

I think many seniors at this school can say that they have done these five things as well. And while I think that we would all like to think that we do these things because it’s our decision and we think they are fun and entertaining, is it true, or is it because it’s what everyone else is doing? Is it about fitting in and following the crowd?

Essentially, an argument can be made that all of high school is about conforming, and doing what everyone else is doing.

When you squeeze 3,000 plus teenagers into a building, most everyone is going to want to fit in. I don’t think our football team sells out the student section at pretty much every home game with out a few people sitting around on a Friday afternoon saying, “hey everyone is going to the game tonight, we should too!”

It is a certain set of kids that set the standards for what being ‘cool’ is, and it is up to the rest of the population to live up to those standards. Not to say that New Trier High School is Mean Girls sequel, but it is what it is.

A majority of us see kids dressing in a certain way, or acting in a particular manner and as human beings we want to be like them for different reasons. Possibly because they’re perceived as more popular than us, or they’re part of a group that we associate with.

That said, there are tons of people in this school who aren’t dressing up this week, or who were not sitting in the sun on Clark and Addison last Friday afternoon. I would consider myself to be friends with some of these people, and many people like me would think of themselves as that as well. I don’t have a problem with these kids at all, and I don’t think Trevian Nation has and grudges against them either.

I actually think that it’s admirable to see. It is what makes New Trier what it is. We’ve got kids that want to be like everyone else, and we’ve got kids who want to be themselves. But what makes New Trier (and particularly our class) special is the kids who want to be themselves, aren’t viewed as outcasts, and are still are accepted in our little society.

So whether this Friday you’re smoking a cigar at Elder, or doing some other activity to ring in the new era of all our lives, just keep in mind that you are doing you, and what ever that you is, is fine by everyone else, and I can’t think of many other places where you could say that.