Starting a new chapter

By: Karuga Koinange, Editor-in-Chief

Well, I knew this would be an emotional day.

Normally, when seniors leave the Towerlight they write a piece reflecting on their fondest memories working for the newspaper.

But in the words of 2 Chainz, “I’m different.”

I want to take this opportunity to reflect on some of the moments that I found myself in less than ideal situations.

In just my second production day (when we lay out the newspaper and send it to print) as editor-in-chief, I had to leave early in order to take care of an assignment for school. I left my staff hanging a bit that day.

In a cover story I wrote in the fall profiling a head coach at TU, I made a poor choice of words in the story and was called out for it by the coach. I had to go back and alter the wording online.

Later in that semester, I failed to schedule a photo shoot for our cover story in time so we were left with bland courtesy photos.

I bring all these bad memories up to say one thing; I’ve grown exponentially in my tenure with the Towerlight.

My time with the Towerlight exposed me to a multitude of talented individuals and amazing experiences.

Bailey is the best right hand woman I could ask for. Her drive and commitment to excellence, along with her unique sense of humor, makes her a true gem. Keep shining, Bails.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the homie Kerry (ay we graduating). I could always count on her to keep me in line and call me out on being an old man due to my forgetfulness. We’ve only been friends for a year, but you the homie for life. And hopefully we work together at Johns Hopkins!

Mel, you’re a beast. I hope you continue reporting in the future because you’re really damn good at it. And if you ever have a hilarious story about a guy you want to share, I’m more than willing to listen (and probably laugh at you).

My fellow old man, Brendan. You’re one of the most creative, informed people that I know. I don’t care what anyone says about your rants. Keep dropping knowledge and keep taking awesome photos.

Whenever I had an off day during production, I could always count on Tori to cheer me up with an unintentionally funny comment. Bless you for dealing with me sending you photos, titles and captions late. I was consistently inconsistent, and you were consistently patient with me. You always found a way to make things work and your knack for design inspires me.

Tim, I know you’ve only been around for a short time, but you’re the man. You’re already doing way better running the sports section than I was when I first took over. I can’t wait to visit you at Turtle, and one of these nights you’ll have to join me on the other side of the bar to share a drink.

Each of these people have helped shape the journalist and the person that I am today.

But I am not a finished product.

As I enter the professional field, I’ll lean on both the good and the bad experiences that I had with the Towerlight to help me survive.

It’s only fitting that I end my time as editor-in-chief the same way that I began, with a Jay-Z quote.

In the words of Hov, I’m “on to the next one.”

 

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