One recurring theme in today’s society is overpopulation.

Why are there so many people on Rolling Road now, enough to create an entire new bypass? Overpopulation.

Why does the amount of litter outnumber the number of bumblebees? Overpopulation.

Why can’t we  walk down the hallway without rebounding off of  a junior boy’s backpack and crashing into a poor freshman passerby? Overpopulation.

There are so many kids crowding our schools hallways that once it clears, one might find themselves gasping for oxygen. It’s practically a health hazard to have so many kids in too small a place.

In numbers,  our school enrollment is  about 60% of Lake Braddock’s annual student body, including their middle school enrollment.

Thinking about the size of their hallways, and school in general, their numbers would make sense. But in our little hometown high school, the numbers just don’t compute.

We have almost as many students and about half the space.  The purpose of stating this fact is certainly not to compare our school to theirs, for our school stomps all over their school with mighty Spartan-like force. But it is no secret that our hallways are puny compared the theirs as well as many others.

I constantly see kids tripping and dodging out of each other’s way, trying to get from class to class. But the passage from lunch to class is the worst.

When you stand at the end of the senior hallway looking down at the crowd of students coming towards you at a very slow pace, shivers run up your spine. The lack of personal space is most evident when one-third of the school is coming out of one concentrated area.

When WS was built in 1966, Springfield was not the booming commuter town it is now.  Now, the demand for space to accommodate all of the students in this area is far too much for the building to withstand. The unfortunate fact, though, is that there is no foreseeable solution except for renovation.

Yet there is still one completely reasonable albeit temporary fix for the issue of overcrowded hallways: practicing proper hallway etiquette.

The first way to practice your common courtesy is to apologize if you bump someone, and certainly help them up if they fall or drop their books.

Also, give teachers and administration their space when walking. Don’t cut them off or smoosh them into the lockers.

The etiquette in front of Senior Rail can get complicated though. The only thing that can really be done in that debacle is stand straight up, look your peers in the eyes, and walk.  If someone needs to get past you, stop for a brief second, let them through, and keep going. Don’t dawdle if you can help it.

We know these seem obvious, but to  some of our peers, common couth doesn’t exist.

So please, slow down and keep your cool in the hallways. We promise, despite having random people in your personal space and maybe getting pushed around, everyone will get to where they are going eventually.