We need to keep saying “hi” to each other.

We need to keep saying “hi” to each other.

Grinnell’s physical layout forces an intimacy we refuse to acknowledge. We’re crammed into dining halls where conversations bleed across tables. We hear left and right, but I always wonder about the actual distance between me and another person. We’re packed like sardines with full access to each other’s lives and no idea how to act on it. We line up for catered events, someone’s backpack always in your space. We navigate the same narrow sidewal…