I volunteered at the hospital today as I have done on Sundays since I was a sophomore in high school. It’s one of my oldest routines at this point, which is odd to me an makes me feel old. I still remember the day that I started, and how I didn’t consider volunteering at that point to be anything particularly important. There’s a passage from Infinite Jest where David Foster Wallace asserts that we never really choose our destinies but kind of run into them or are stolen away by them. He argues that despite our best-laid plans, the things that happen to us usually happen out of chance and circumstance rather than as the result of calculation. I find this to be generally speaking pretty true, and I think my time at Mount Nittany reflects that. It’s hard to predict the things that will end up being important in our lives.
Anyways one of my main tasks as a volunteer is to discharge patients, meaning that I take them to the lobby from their rooms in a wheelchair once they are ready to go home. In the approximate quarter mile of hallway between the patient floors and the Mount Nittany lobby, I am usually able to have some pretty good conversations with the more talkative patients I discharge. I was struck today by how many patients were excited about our victory against Ohio State last night – even those who personally expressed that they were generally not very interested in Penn State football. It made me appreciate how much happiness the Nittany Lions are able to bring to the lives of the people in our community. As a student I often take this for granted – yesterday I realized how wide-spread this phenomenon really is. Even people who live an hour away and came to Mount Nittany briefly were thrilled by our victory, and were curious to hear my stories about the debauchery in Beaver Canyon following the game. I think it is safe to say that everyone in the hospital was a bit happier than usual. At the very least, I felt a difference.
The point I’m trying to make is that lots of different things can make people happy. Personally, I am a bit ambivalent about the status of our football program and the role it plays in our community, but I also appreciate all that provides to people in ways I might not assume. I think it’s important to be aware of this.
I will also add that I appreciate how Penn State football continuously offers me something to talk about with strangers. I was doing research this weekend at Bryant University, and everyone I met wanted to talk about the victory once they found out I was a Penn State graduate student. As someone who occasionally struggles with the concept of “small talk,” I’m glad that football is always a safe topic.
Nathan, its awesome to hear that PSU Football has an impact on people, even when they are in a hospital. I understand there has been controversy about Penn State’s Football culture, but I personally think last night was a perfect example about how it can really unite a community like you would never expect. In that moment, when we won the game, happy valley was really more like one big happy family. Its exciting to hear your perspective about how this even affects life at a hospital, which is not usually an extremely happy atmosphere. Here’s to the Penn State community!