Written by Stephanie, MSA Student Copywriter Lead. February 14th, 2024.
It’s just as important to foster strong platonic relationships as to find romantic ones. Friends are the family you choose for yourself; they can inspire you to grow, make you laugh when you want to cry and support you through good and bad times.
Friends at first sight
Kate Trinh and Paula Cuadros met while working at the MSA reception desk at the Fennell Campus and bonded over their shared experiences as international students.
“As international students, we go through different stuff,” Cuadros said. “Like being broke and having to work on weekends or when I don’t have anything to eat because I don’t have the time to cook, she’ll share her wonderful food with me.”
Friends can broaden our horizons because they help us experience and learn new things. Last December, Trinh got to share her first Christmas celebration with Cuadros after stopping by her house to bring her a gift on Christmas Eve.
“Back home, people who don’t follow a religion celebrate Lunar New Year, but we know Christmas is a big celebration here in Canada,” Trinh said. “I don’t celebrate Christmas, so I was surprised by how big Paula and her family celebrate it.”
It’s traditional to visit friends and family on Lunar New Year to share gifts and good wishes for the coming year. The significance and prevalence of certain holidays may change from country to country, but hoping for the well-being of those we care about is a sentiment that often stays the same regardless of where you go in the world.
Different college programs attract students with distinct personalities, and since birds of the same feather often flock together, they are a great place to meet like-minded people.
Daisy Calderon says she met her best friend, Madi Costa, after scanning the class for someone she could vibe with during their first year in the Journalism program together.
“We like to call each other almost every day after school to dish about the day and share our feelings,” Calderon said. “We like to go on what we like to call our little dates where we get sushi, or most recently, we went Taco Bell and ate while gossiping in the car.”
Typically, we choose who we want to be our friends, or they will pick us. But, sometimes, fate will intervene, like with Rebecca Nurse and Sofia Serna, two Health and Wellness students who met after a teacher paired them for a group assignment.
“We study together, work out together, and talk all the time,” Nurse said. “Meeting Sofia and becoming her friend has made my Mohawk experience wonderful. We are a great team.”
“Love knows no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, and penetrates walls to arrive at a destination full of hope” – Maya Angelou
You never know when you’ll meet the person that you’re meant to spend your life with. During the 21st century, it’s common for people to meet romantic partners using apps like Hinge, Bumble, or Tinder.
Gone are the days when you could gush over meeting someone by the apples in the grocery store, or so we thought. College can allow students to foster all kinds of relationships, from professional to platonic to romantic.
Courtney Bottke and her husband Blake met in 2015 during their third semester of the Graphic Design program at Mohawk College and started dating a month later. They graduated in 2017, began their prospective careers, and were engaged in 2019 before getting married at a small, pandemic-style ceremony in 2021.
“Being from different cities, we likely would not have crossed paths if we didn’t choose the same program at Mohawk simultaneously,” Bottke said.
Partners can be our built-in cheerleaders during college and in life, helping each other through late night study sessions, celebrating each others successes, and supporting each other when things don’t go as we originally planned.
According to one Mohawk couple, it’s their first relationship so they still have a lot to learn, but they are enjoying experiencing the journey together.
“We’ve learned how valuable communication is,” Student said. “It can be hard to be honest about your feelings, but sharing the truth can open up valuable conversations that you didn’t know you needed. Through thick and thin, we always show up, and I am so thankful for our relationship.”
Whether you’re spending your Valentine’s Day with your romantic partner, friends, family, or pets, or celebrating the love you have for yourself, we wanted to spread the love from us to you.