opinions
14 opinions
May 18, 2012
Stories, legends graduate with Class of 2012 as a new era begins Well, we’ve come to the end. For seniors, it’s the time of year for planning, for memories, for pictures and for family. But most of all, it’s the time for lasts-the last half day of high school, the last school spirit dress-up day, the last time you’ll eat lunch at those tables in the Commons. And for me, the last column. As the Lifestyle Editor for the Image, I spent a lot of time looking for stories. For columns, this would be anything that made me mad or caught my attention. But for the Lifestyle section, this would be the stories of memorable events and especially the stories of individual students. I’ve written about extraordinary acts by these students, who’ve excelled in overcoming personal problems (like anorexia), set and achieved high goals (like running marathons and starting businesses) and participated in amazing events (like an outdoor throwback hockey game, the first in Lafayette’s
Take a Minute
Hannah Boxerman
history). And that’s what makes our school unique. Everyone here has a story. Off the top of my head, I can think of dozens of these stories. Students here are known for their skills, eccentric activities, leadership,
resilience and more. Students whose stories we’ve explored in the Image have overcome disease, created charitable organizations and excelled in both athletics and academics. Collectively, these stories come together to form the crazy, enthusiastic and talented Class of 2012. The Class of 2012 is not afraid to be themselves, and resolutely so. And as long as they were themselves, with all of the passion and zeal that being yourself entails, we were here to make them noticed. As the Class of 2012 heads off into the future, scattered every which way, my wish for you is to take your story with you, into college or the military or the workforce, wherever you may go. And for the Classes of 2013, 2014 and 2015, be ready to come into your own. Because the next crop of Image writers are waiting and ready to write your story. Thanks for a great year.
Volunteering opens eyes about taking simple choices for granted and helping others Soup or salad? Soup or salad? It used to be such a trivial question to me. Choosing one or the other never even caused the slightest quiver of judgment, or the slightest bead of sweat. Either way I’d end up full. Either way I’d end up happy. Either way I’d end up warm. But as I posed the question to helpless strangers, I couldn’t help but notice its actual significance to them. Soup or salad? This, like many other questions, caused them more discomfort, more concern than many others. They were faced with a meal tonight—this wasn’t always the case. They had to make the right call. It made them sweat. As they thought, I offered a consolatory smile—a slight, comforting grin that I had engendered to display comfort, to show them that they had all the time in the world. I was going to be there all day. I—like them, and yet, vastly unlike them—had nowhere to go. Eventually, each of them arrived at a decision: soup or salad. I doled out both with a large plastic ladle with a green handle onto tan trays that seemed as though they had lasted since the days when they served baby boomers. A small boy was next in line, followed by a woman—presumably his mother— who was missing the majority of her
On the Contrary Max Thoman
teeth and hair. Both grinned as they shuffled down to me. “Soup or salad?” I asked. The boy furrowed his brow, thinking hard. He was hungry, that was for sure, but was he in the mood for his favorite chicken noodle, or was he craving his mother’s praise for choosing the healthier salad. His stomach won out—“SOUP!” he shouted as an even bigger, beaming grin emerged from his lips. His mother rolled her eyes. “He’ll have the salad,” she said, dousing her child’s excitement, though she was just looking out for his well-being. But as he walked away with his head hung low, I made sure to give him helpings of both. Everyone deserves soup
and salad…everyone should be happy and full. A simple choice for me is a serious point for those in shelters. Eating isn’t a right, it isn’t a guarantee…it’s a privilege. It’s luck. But here, I feel like we all want something. Right now, it’s the same thing—some storybook ending to the year, some great sitcom finale. One where we walk out of a deserted room for the last time, look back longingly to a past we never relished in, but that will always define us, switch off the light and sentimentally move on. One where we meet all the faces from that year, where we wryly exchange smiles and somehow find the perfect final words to sum up this chapter of our lives. And we can want. We have this privilege because there’s a sense of safety and security that surrounds us. And we crave it. But for those in the shelter, there is no such thing as safety or closure. There’s only tomorrow and what that might bring. It makes you think existentially and, in the end, arrive at the fact that they’ve taught me so much: the value of a dollar, the importance of loved ones, the significance of life’s every day moments and the value of a choice. Even if it’s just between soup and salad.
stars & gripes Stars To:
• Dress code rumors being false. Luckily, the one good thing about going to a public school is not being taken away from us. • The dance-off at Prom, won by senior Tom Unruh. No word yet on whether Dancing With the Stars has called. • Seniors leaving before everyone else, meaning teachers get an extra week to get through to students without the force-field of senioritis. • President Barack Obama for speaking out in favor of gay marriage. The government has better things to do than decide who people can marry. • The Community Service class for raising nearly $200, bringing us that much closer to knocking out cancer. What a great idea for a great cause.
Gripes To:
• The passing of MCA from the Beastie Boys and Dick Clark. The music industry lost two greats who both inspired their generations. • End-of-year finals, the only thing with better curves than Jennifer Lopez. • A Clayton High School principal allegedly creating a fake Facebook profile to spy on students. Shouldn’t there be an age limit for Facebook? • The incredibly high standards of cleanliness for our lockers at the end of the year. That mark has been there since 1990. It’s not going anywhere.
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