Trimming the Trees...

As exams come to an end, residence halls close, and we prepare for rest and relaxation over the holidays, work continues on at Wake Forest. The quad is bustling with bodies of not students but workers chopping down the trees (gasp!). Wait, wait, hold on a second, did I miss something? What will shade me when I'm studying outside? What will serve as goal-posts for my pick-up frisbee games? What can I lean on when making conversation with that special someone?

Fear not, undergrads, the ash trees are being slowly replaced with gorgeous maple trees to keep the rays away during the sunny days. Due to disease, like in 1987, the current ash trees are withering but are being replaced with several maples. We'll all be able to enjoy the beauty of the quad as if the old trees never moved.

As a focal point of the Reynolda Campus, Hearn Plaza presents a perfect locale for students to meet, hang out, and take a few moments from their busy academic and extra-curricular lives. No different from old photos and as we saw in the Fall Convocation picnic, our Wake Forest community thrives on Hearn Plaza. So when the springtime comes around and the weather warms up, let's enjoy the the warm rays, the shade of the trees, and most importantly, the company of friends.

I have a dream...

As the New Year inches closer, we are met with not only new opportunities and new beginnings, but also new challenges and hardships. Within the last year, the sound bites from our media have been filled with election coverage, falling gas prices, and, most importantly, the economy. What does this mean for us as students and young adults entering the job market and beginning our climb to achieve the “American Dream?”

In the Roaring Twenties, we witnessed our nation’s economy booming, the stock market growing explosively, and the emergence of social upheaval. F. Scott Fitzgerald captured not only both America’s flourishing society but also its socio-economic complacency in The Great Gatsby. Difficult but yet rewarding, Jay Gatsby’s climb to the top embodies the adversities we overcome everyday to achieve the “American Dream.” While we face difficulties and hardships, much like our predecessors in the Roosevelt and Kennedy years, we must maintain a positive outlook on both the economy and where our future plans may take us. As History Department Chair Dr. Simone Caron reiterates, “Obama’s plan for the future will need to address economic woes faced by Roosevelt, and international tensions faced by Kennedy. The landslide election results demonstrate that the American public has faith that Obama can handle the multifarious tribulations facing the country (Wake Forest Magazine, December 2008).”

Indeed, faith gives meaning in times of trouble, and this hope is what binds our Wake Forest community despite the economic woes. “It may seem terribly ironic: that we are entering the period of economic downturn just at the same time we have launched our ambitious strategic plan. However, I am not deterred or pessimistic,” remarked President Hatch (State of the University Address). We, as students, must remain optimistic and hopeful that our futures will remain bright and promising. This is the first time our generation has been tested. Achieving our goals may take some creativity and our “American Dream’s must not be taken for granted.

Through adversity or difficulty, character is formed or at least you have to learn to be resourceful in your thinking and your approach. "The best way to not feel hopeless is to get up and do something. Don’t wait for good things to happen to you. If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope, you will fill yourself with hope”-Barack Obama.