By: Ariana West
Dearest Simpson and my fellow 2021-2022 graduates,
First off, I want to start by thanking all of you. Thank you, Simpson, for bringing me some of my closest friends and the most unforgettable memories.
Coming in as freshmen, I don’t think anyone truly can ever prepare you for how hard college truly is. From the all-nighters, mental breakdowns, and everything in between, no matter how prepared you think you are, you soon come to realize the next four years of your life are going to be anything but easy. However, as I come to the end of my time here at Simpson, those hard times are something I will be forever grateful for. The tough times make getting my diploma that much sweeter. If college was easy, everyone would go.
To my fellow seniors, I am so proud of all of you. Your grit, determination, and perseverance has got you to this point in your life. Every time you felt like giving up or dropping out, you didn’t. You pushed through adversity and kept going because you knew that bettering yourself and acquiring a degree would ultimately pay off in the long run.
We are the class that survived the COVID-19 pandemic. We had to live through fully-online classes, better known as “Zoom University,” for some, weekly COVID tests or vaccination shots, having to wear masks every time we left our dorm rooms, and not to mention a full course load. I can’t speak for everyone, but for me personally, when classes were fully online my mental health struggled lately, getting out of bed just to sit at my desk and attend class seemed like the biggest endeavor. Then, in April of 2020, we were all forced to leave campus and finish out the semester back home away from our friends and classmates. But did we give up after all of this? Absolutely not, we came back this year stronger because of what we went through and so ready to attend class back in person at last.
To all the freshmen, sophomores, and juniors, my best advice is to cherish every moment. These four years of your life are going to be some that you never forget. One day you’re going to wake up and realize your time at Simpson is running out. Cherish even the smallest of moments, every study session in the Student Union, every coffee date in the Bean Scene, every practice or game you get to attend or play in, make the most of it because one day you will be graduated, and not able to get any of those moments back.
On another note, thank you to everyone who had an impact on my time while at Simpson. The past year for me has been quite difficult. Battling health issues and not knowing when or if I would even be able to come back this semester to finish out my degree on campus was a hard reality for me and I would not be here or be the person I am today without my support system. I would personally like to thank Alex Thiemann, Molly Rupert, and Miroslaw Woznica for working with me and allowing me to attend classes online the first couple weeks of the semester when I was unable to attend in-person. I’d like to thank my friends and family for having my back not only these past few months, but also my entire three and a half years here at Simpson. I’m not going to list names for fear of leaving anyone out, but those of you who have been a part of my journey, from the bottom of my heart, I thank you and I love you.
While I cannot wait to walk across that stage in the Spring and accept my diploma, I am trying to make the most of my time left here at Simpson.
To the student body and my fellow SLATE staff, thank you for letting me be your Editor and Chief this past semester. To everyone that reads our articles and supports the student newspaper, we are thankful to each and every one of you.
As I get ready to exit this chapter in my life and enter into a new one, I want to speak for the entire senior class and say thank you Simpson. Thank you for bringing us some of our closest friends, for pushing us in and out of the classroom, but most importantly for supporting us and helping shape us not only into better adults, but better Christians.
Goodbye Simpson, thank you for the craziest, hardest, most amazing years of my life thus far.
With all my love,
Ariana West, Editor and Chief