Editorial #289

In this issue, Parie Desai reports on the North East Planning Committee’s decision to make the pavement expansion along South Street permanent. This decision means that the outdoor seating areas, originally implemented for Covid-19, are here to stay. For a town in Scotland, prioritising outdoor spaces may seem confusing to an outsider. Known for its rainy weather and cold winds, why would we take away practical parking spaces for something we can only enjoy for short blips of the year?

Anyone who wonders this can find the answer in the sunshine. When light illuminates all the shadows and crevices and gardens there is a collective exhalation. St Andrews has a uniquely impressive dedication to being optimistic about sunshine — all it takes is a few rays for The Central’s or The Dunny’s outdoor seating to be popularised with Peroni and Aperol Spritz, fur coats, and sunglasses. St Andrews, despite our deadlines and essays, is spreading its wings in the warmth. This optimism has been made clear in the last few weeks, with the enjoyment of grassy quads, beach swims, and open windows. This valent optimism speaks to what defines St Andrews. Here in my last solo editorial, I wish to share my thoughts on it with you. 

As St Andreans, we have proven to make the best of any situation. These streets are full of the type of people that will use temporary disappointments to push themselves further, to reorient their approach to a situation, or to let something go to make room for something new. Whether it is a bad grade, a heartbreak, or a rejection from a desperately wanted flat, we know disappointment and frustration. We know what it is to be caught in the worst rain of your life, for the wind to bite at your fingers and ears, for darkness to meet you when you leave your 3pm tutorial. How much more sensitive does this make us to sweetness? 

Excuse my sentimentality, but our collective appreciation of the sun makes me see the sharedness of our experiences in this space, in this sun. It makes me smile that this joy has been recognised as officially important and deserving of taking up physical dedicated space. Let this kind of sunny joy take up your life in what is left of the semester. Deadlines and weather permitting, photosynthesize with the rest of the population and read this week’s issue outside. I hope you enjoy. Riley.