Graphic by Ryan Lee
Jillie McLeod
Opinions Reporter
The first month of 2022 has come to a close, bringing a good opportunity for reflection. We can highlight and appreciate the ways in which our community has pushed through a rough start to the year and consider how this energy can be taken through the coming inevitably difficult months.
This January has felt like Groundhog Day, a repetition of the same month we have lived through for the past few years. Various aspects of this month, both serious and somewhat more trivial, have added to this past month’s glumness. The Omicron variant has continued the dreariness of the pandemic. There have been multiple hate crimes against groups within our community (to learn more, you can read this message from Principal Stras). Lastly, Mother Nature chose to dump almost two feet of snow on Newton, conveniently beginning on Friday night and clearing just in time for school on Monday morning.
While this month has been dismal, collectively, we have been able to find good things to focus on and create ways to make it through the dreary month of January.
One thing in particular is the phenomenon of Wordle. Every day, I look forward to walking into my first block class and seeing the mini-game pulled up on people’s phones or computers. When you walk through the halls, you can hear friends sharing their scores for the day and laughing about ridiculous last-ditch effort guesses they made. Playing this game every morning and sending my (blacked-out) board to my friends has been an integral part of my January morning routine, and it has kept me and many others sane throughout the month.
Wordle is just one of many ways our community has kept up hope in January. Our sports teams are going all out for spirit days, with team Instagram accounts showcasing everyone’s amazing outfits throughout the day. WIN blocks (everyone’s favorite) have been getting more creative, like Mr. Rubin’s Encanto watch party and mental health discussion, which many students enjoyed. Let’s not forget about the talk of the hallways and lunch tables, Euphoria, which has started airing again after being delayed for two years due to COVID.
All of these activities and events have made this January a little more bearable and have created a mindset that would be nice to carry throughout the rest of the year. Our past few years have not been easy, but maintaining hope and optimism is the key to a brighter year ahead.
