I sighed a breath of relaxation as I plopped myself down on the couch. I had just spent three days at Operation Snowball, a retreat in Wisconsin where students get to know each other and themselves through activities and reflection. 

Every attendee with whom I spoke loved the experience and got familiar with so many more people than they expected. Of course, I was glad to return to my family, my home and my phone. I turned my phone on and half an hour after I returned and checked Twitter, looking to catch up on any news or updates from my peers.

Instead, I saw an unusual amount of tweets coming from people who didn’t go on the retreat complaining about how the kids on Snowball were talking about the experience on social media. Some said the “Snowballers” took too many pictures and they were talking too much about the retreat.  Why?

Why were these people angry that their peers had a great time getting to know each other?

Was it out of hate? Sadness? Envy?

After some shock from what I just read, I realized this didn’t only apply to Snowball. There are many other groups that are criticized for similar

reasons. For example, Kairos, a Catholic retreat program, is often compared to Snowball. Kairos also receives criticism from other students about the participants being overly cliquey.

If there’s a group, club or organization that happens to be very genial with each other, I say, what’s the harm? Some of these kids have formed great bonds with others they hadn’t known before, so vilifying their relationships is not the considerate thing to do. We should embrace the fact that people have come together to get to know each other.

So next time you hear about a tight-knit group, don’t take any insulting feelings of yours to others. Let’s appreciate that your peers are getting close with new people.