For the Demons and the Dead Poets: I was beyond honored to be chosen as the Editor-in-Chief for Argus in the 2023-2024 year. I’ve been a part of this team for three years now and it means everything to me. This magazine gave me my first publication, my first editing job, and so many friends that share the same love and passion I have for writing and art. There is a community here that cultivates such an amazing desire for literature and visual arts and we all come together to be a part of such an amazing project.
Each year presents something new, something different, and I love that there’s a new set of challenges, a new aesthetic every time. Being a part of Argus these last several years has given me a place on campus and a real sense of community within the school. The people I have met through this organization and because of it have become some of my closest friends, including my previous Editor-in-Chief, Kailyn Fredrick and the current Editor-in-Chief of the Potpourri, Haley Wiggins.
For the longest time, I have loved words. I was always the one reading in the corner of the classroom, getting my books confiscated by my mom for staying up past my bedtime. When my school did AR points, I was determined to hold my spot as number one in the school. Reading was my thing and I held onto it as tightly as I could. Writing came second. I was already making these stories in my head, placing myself as the hero, the giant-slayer, the mountain-climber. It only made sense that I would write them down, put them into real words. My first stories were…not fantastic, to say the absolute least. But they were a start nonetheless.
I was never meant for anything else. Words, writing, creating worlds and characters and plot twists, reveals, monsters, magic, it was what I was good at and I loved it. I have always loved it. And here on campus, through Argus and the community it fosters, I have only learned to love it more. I have grown as a writer and as a person and the people I’ve met have bolstered me higher than I could ever go on my own.
We choose our yearly themes with a lot of thought and care behind them. We try to choose things that people can connect with, ideas that can inspire a range of art and amazing content. Our theme this year, Gilded in Gold, is undoubtedly my favorite. There’s many different directions that our writers and artists could take this idea. One path would be a renaissance aesthetic, the red and the golds and the opulence of that time. There are a hundred different metaphors and stories and imagery to be found here and I can’t wait for these submissions. But another path that this theme can take is our golden moments in life, the things that live in our memories in a bubble of light and warmth. I think of bonfires in October, concerts and performances at Iberville Green, car rides at sunset with the windows down. Gold is the highest you can go, first place, rich and fat and happy. Where were you when you felt golden? Where were you when everything was perfect?
I have so much love for Argus and our staff, past and present, and I plan on squeezing every moment out of my last year with this team. I’m so grateful for the people and the opportunities this magazine has given me and I cannot wait to see where it goes in the future. Thank you. To all of you. To anyone and everyone who deserves it. Thank you.