Beyond the Games: Thalia’s Quest for Community at Stanford
“You have to do things for yourself that contribute to your own happiness … Farm Games is one of those things [for me].”
Within the ever-moving crowd of Farm Games participants—amongst first-timers interested in scoping out what the Games have to offer as well as long-time veterans of the scene—one will be able to find Thalia Rae Revilla. Whether she’s giving her all in the Track and Field 4x400 relay, or supporting her team in victory on the sandy Beach Volleyball courts, Thalia is a symbol of enthusiasm and spirit. A Resident Assistant for the Roble dormitory, Thalia represents our Redwood Neighbourhood during competitions. Heading towards her graduation in the spring of 2025, this is her first year participating in Farm Games, and she is determined to take in and savor every moment she can of the Games.
At the start of the academic year as Farm Games began its second year, the thing that initially caught Thalia’s attention was the promise of a fun afternoon with prizes to win and free food to enjoy. “I took it upon myself to go visit the website because it sounded pretty cool … It’s just [sporting] competitions with free prizes and food. I just don’t see any possible reason why someone wouldn’t want to go.” As she continued to attend competitions, her motivation towards the Games shifted away from the plentiful freebies that were offered, and towards much more personal motivations—a desire for self-growth. “Maybe I should get active again, like I’ve been telling myself for a whole year. So I thought this was my opportunity … [I] showed up in person and made great memories and connections with people.”
Farm Games stands apart from many other Stanford events thanks to the Herd, the student leadership team which assists the organization of competitions by uplifting undergraduate voices. There is a kinship and familiarity in the setting that is forged by this unique leadership approach. Alongside Farm Games’s low barrier for entry, it becomes a location in which unforeseen friendships are formed. Thalia likened the nature of this pressure-free environment to that of being in elementary school—the shared competition, teambuilding, and unified tackling of a task becomes easy, unconscious: “That's how I feel like friendship should happen … It’s very nostalgic for me … You’re just like, ‘OK, let’s do it together. Someone’s telling us to.’” As a Stanford undergraduate, where many avenues of conversation for small talk tend to consist of one’s field of study and academic life, the laid-back nature of the Games feels more akin to how organic connections are formed in youth. “[Farm Games] is different from other events because it’s not like … you have to introduce yourself and give background on who you are or an elevator pitch … Here, you’re playing the game and conversations come up along the way more and more.”
If Thalia were to describe the Games and the community it fosters in one word, she would choose authentic. As the Games often stand so separated from a student’s own day-to-day life and all the stressors of being a Stanford undergraduate, it fosters a sense of authenticity to the interactions and relations formed within. Despite only seeing some of her Farm Games friends within the settings of the Farm Games events, Thalia is confident that her connections with them are “stronger than many of the people I’ve met here at Stanford.” The lack of tension towards being ‘good’ at the games allows for people to come out and try something new, fostering this authenticity and sense of genuine-ness: “It’s because it’s so integrated, so communal and everyone’s cheering each other on all the time!”
For Thalia, this sense of authenticity is critical to the value of the Farm Games community. Within the greater Stanford culture, she is familiar with experiencing a sense of isolation, of being a “sore thumb.” Thalia’s social battery quickly runs out in many other contexts, making her feel tense and uncomfortable; and with all the obligations of a graduating senior, sometimes it can be hard to find the motivation to show up. “With Farm Games, I swear, I’m there all day. I’m there till after! … I’m just there because it’s a place I want to be.” Sharing that excitement and joy for these competitions makes a world of difference to her—calling up her grandmother to detail all the moments of her day that made her smile is a marker of time well spent, and memories to be cherished. “It’s what I want in the future for my life; worth living.” To that end, Thalia asserted that her involvement in Farm Games has greatly contributed to her enjoyment of her time at Stanford, as well as her well-being as a whole.
Which isn’t to say that Farm Games is without its low moments for Thalia. But even when she faced challenges within the Games, it simply stood to further highlight just how supportive the community is. Underneath the unforgiving October sun of our Track and Field event, Thalia gave her best effort during the 4x400 relay, despite feeling like she was “literally dying.” Thalia recounted how in the throes of her post-race suffering, “some people at Farm Games, they came [and] brought me water. They’re like ‘Get up.’ And I was like, ‘Please, let me die in peace.’ But yeah, they just brought water. And it was just, ... people are very kind.” To this end, Thalia advocates for Farm Games to continue as a permanent Stanford tradition. Despite the Games only being in their second year, it has become one of her top five experiences that summarizes her time at the University: “It’s just been that pivotal and it’s something I want to walk away from Stanford remembering. And it will be.”
Thalia expressed a contagious, unfettered excitement for Farm Games, and with each new anecdote she recalled, it shone through every smile on her face that these Games meant the world to her. She’s thrilled to have found such a caring and authentic community, where she has both a great team and wonderful friends who share her same enthusiasm about this new Stanford tradition. It is this shared enthusiasm that encourages bonds to form through competitions reminiscent of elementary school field day, or simply hanging out with friends on the playground, and it’s this shared enthusiasm that allows Farm Games to exist as a wellspring of undergraduate community. “So I very eagerly wait for the next [Games] because I’m excited to see what will come and feel the same smile and hear the same laughs.”
