Aug 20.

8/20/2025 8:47. Correspondence 5

People are nice. I truly believe that. Even people who are not can sometimes be. There are always exceptions, like Christopher Columbus, but my claim still stands. People are nice. I think most people want to be nice. Maybe my optimism comes from luck and privilege. I don't know. I just think people are nice. Some evidence to my claim follows; all taken from my experiences today. 

I met my Mandarin professor today. She was lovely. She seemed to truly care about her students. She took time to try to learn everyone's name and dispelled everyone's fears. She smiled easily and laughed often. She took so much pride and joy in showing us where she is from and her history of how she ended up here. She gave everyone in class a staple Chinese candy called White Rabbits (they were superb). She made me feel so much more comfortable and confident in myself. She shared with us her struggles in learning certain languages, and it made me feel seen. She was a very nice human being, and I can't wait to step back into her class. 

I went to the Honors residence dining hall today. It was lovely. The food was so homey in the best way. It warmed up my soul and made me smile. The staff and servers were so wonderful, too. They made me feel so comfortable. I chatted with the lovely man making my plate, and he joked with me about the oddities of the building and hall. There is a door that is an emergency exit right beside the normal exit that sounds an alarm. The alarm was sounding while I was standing there, and one of the staff yelled in a semi-exasperated yet amused voice, "I got it," and went to reset the door while the rest of the staff were chatting amongst themself and me about the stupidity of putting an emergency exit right beside the main exit. That may sound like a dull story to you, but to me it was so human and forgiving and patient. The family or rapport and chemistry everyone had with each other. The annoyed yet familiar glances they gave each other with a smirk. The wisdom and forgiveness to criticize the placement and not the opener. A snapshot of nice human beings. 

I went to a floor event today. It was lovely. For the most part. It was called poker chips and queso. I was split on whether I should go or not, but decided it would be better to go than regret it. So I mosey on upstairs and see a small congregation of people. I tried to join a game of poker that was going on, but was quietly told the buy-in was 20 bucks and left soon after. At the time, I didn't think they were very nice. I grabbed my own deck of cards and invited someone standing by themselves to play golf with me. The RA organizer saw us and came over, sharing her love for golf with us, and helped me teach my new friend. As more people joined the event, a fear of mine came to fruition. Someone recognized me as the accordion guy and asked me about it. Like wildfire, it spread as people were begging me to go get it to show them. I acquiesced and brought down my accordion as well as my banjo because someone asked about it. After a quick demonstration with some kind words falling on me, especially from the two playing the $40 game of poker, I set it all down and gave the floor to everyone else. The event quickly evolved from a "poker chips and queso" event and into "a try your hand at playing this strange and quirky instrument" event. Everyone was so kind and supportive of each other. Getting one another to try it and see what they could do. My RA stopped by and tried his hand at banjo. He apparently plays guitar, and I could definitely tell. Everyone was sharing laughs and compliments, and new connections. Most people filed away after a while, and I got to stay and have a wonderful talk with some of the RAs on the floor. Incredibly laid back and nice people. My fears of the event turned into something I was very happy I attended. 

I have had many more experiences today alone I could write about, but I've already been writing for a while. Maybe it's naivety. Maybe it truly is privilege. Whatever it is, I never want to lose it, honestly. I also want to see the kindness and believe in good. The rest of the world's misery can balance me out. Take a moment, though, to see the mundane moments and small kindnesses we share every day. We can't allow ourselves to become accustomed to it. If we do, all we see are the worst moments in life. 

Until next time, 

Calvin Landreth