I had just stumbled back into my room from a fun night and I had begun my nightly ritual of drinking two bottles of water as fast as I can and changing into my pajamas. I had just changed into my favorite pair of black and silver Nike shorts when I hear a “BEEEEEEPP…. BEEEEEP… BEEEEEP…” it was the sound the fire alarm going off.

            Knowing that it was going to be cold outside I quickly took my shorts off and slipped some sweatpants on and walked out with my roommate laughing and wondering what was going on. As we walked down the hall we heard some of our hall mates yelling to one another “Yooooo make sure you can’t see anything, campo may make rounds while we’re outside.” Hearing this made me laugh.

            This is probably one of the strangest fire drills. Not because the cause of the “fire” was some idiot on the 3rd floor burning his popcorn to the extent that smoke began to fill the room and building with an awful burning smell. But because I didn’t have to be quiet. For the past 13 years from K-12 we have been taught that when we hear a fire alarm we must exit the building in a single file line and stay quiet. I remember having to sit out during recess while all my friends played kickball and teased me for getting caught talking during the fire drill. Once recess was no longer an option it became more severe, it was detention sometimes it was lunch detention or saturday school. I had been taught to stay quiet and not make noise during a fire drill. 

            That was not the case in college. It was as though all my life they had played me and lied to me. I didn’t have to be quiet, how would being quite help me out in a fire. R-World has shown me the true meaning of being in a fire drill.