October Editorial

    The newspaper editorial is often utilized as an opportunity for watchdogging, making readers mindful of injustices and faults. Faults, however, cannot be found in evaluating the school’s response to the recent loss.

     The Pen would like to praise the actions not just of the administration, but those of the entire school community. In the aftermath of tragedy, the school collectively grieved, and was able to unify when spirit was tested most; we collectively responded, celebrating a life rather than mourning a death. The unity that arose out of such tragic a loss was so powerful and so astounding, that to deem it familial would suffice as understatement.

    The administration acted quickly and properly in providing support. The sense of fragility inherent in loss was indeed jarring, but the administration was up-front and honest with the irrefutable truths of the event.

     It is often too easy to be swept into a mindless routine of self-absorbancy. Too often do we allow our days to pass into months, years, entire lives of stagnant, emotionless meaning. The places, the events, the memories, the people–how is it that they pass too soon, too quickly for us to gain a foothold on our emotional surroundings?

     During most of our lives, we only consider the long, fulfilling life that lies promisingly before us, and with an almost naive optimism, we fail to realize how precious life is.

     “Tragedy” cannot even begin to describe the death of loved one. The word is so prevalent in everyday life, attached to news, gossip, fictional works of literature, that it cannot encompass the multitude of emotions we feel after loss.

     We are vulnerable, confused, angry and upset. Yet we also displayed resiliency, which is paramount to the grieving process; the school has demonstrated it to the utmost.

     As we attempt to move forward, let us be cogniscent of the definity of the past, the transience of the present, and the unbounded possibilty of the future.