This past Wednesday night upperclassmen returned to their freshmen houses to surprise the newest members of campus to a wonderful evening of refreshments and pleasant relaxation. After house meetings, swaths of returning students decorously knocked on the front doors of their former residences and entreated the Residence Fellows for the company of the first-years in a Stanford tradition known as “dorm storm”.
Freshmen at first had varying sentiments regarding the sudden outing. One inhabitant of Lagunita remarked, “I was most anxious when the upperclassmen requested our presence, especially when we were taken to a rather barren field. However, I saw that the dining staff at the behest of the sophomores had already prepared an assortment of teas and delicacies for our pleasure. They even had transported the finest cedar tables, the highest quality china, and gorgeous dainty napkins for our comfort! The civility and earnestness of our hosts completely subdued my nerves; I knew that a most splendid night was awaiting me and my peers.”
For one hour the great Classes of 2014, 2015, and 2016 regaled the great Class of 2017 amid a most quaint starry evening. As the clock truck midnight, all four classes helped the dining staff clear the tables and pack up the equipment before parting ways and reluctantly traveling back to their dorms. Before leaving, one sophomore reflected on the universally pleasurable experience. “When I was a freshman, I thought that dorm storm would be humiliating and terrifying. I soon realized that the upperclassmen simply wanted me to show me the best that Stanford had to offer. Hopefully we showed the Class of 2017 the decorum and sophistication that characterize our community.”
