I am truly a mosaic of everyone I have ever loved. Graphic by Anna Gritzenbach.
ANNA GRITZENBACH | MANAGING EDITOR | agritzenbach@butler.edu
Just like everything else in my academic career thus far, I have put off writing this sendoff until the very last minute. It seems fitting to write this in the company of those whom I never thought I would be able to work so closely with.
I wouldn’t have believed it if you had told my first-year self that I would end up as a managing editor for the school newspaper. Though I have always loved to write, I never considered journalism as a possible path for myself. That is, until Maddie Wood convinced me to join The Butler Collegian.
If it weren’t for my wonderful friend, my Tuesday nights for the past two years would have been a lot more open. Some of my fondest Butler memories include laying my head on Maddie’s shoulder while jeering at Carrie-Ann through our computer screen, listening to Aidan Gregg’s newest sound byte, becoming the third recipient of the Collegian-exclusive N.O.S.C.P.D.M., following in one Reece Butler’s footsteps and giggling with the closing crew — Caleb, Emma, David, Sawyer, Jada, Lilly and Jia.
Unlike many from my high school graduating class, I obviously did not attend a university in Illinois. In fact, out of the 567 kids in my class, I was the only one to attend Butler. The summer before my first year, I had no clue who I was going to room with — and I would have rather lived on the Knoll before going with a random stranger. I took to Facebook and fortunately found the person whom I would call my first friend in college and long-standing roommate: Cate Pugliese.
Before fully settling into campus life, a knock on Cate and I’s ResCo door brought Skylar to our world with the promise of countless adventures, storytimes and laughs. We filled the confines of B116 in ResCo and 401D in Fairview with countless pictures and vines of ivy, late-night South Park episodes with Sean, Wednesdays with Sky and the boys next door — Ian and Connor — and a very short-lived megabed.
The only thing I was sure of when coming to college was that I needed to keep dance in my life. I went from dancing 20-plus hours a week to needing a nap after going to a 50-minute class. Both Sky and I participated in Butler University Dance Club’s ballet that semester, which happened to be “Coppélia”, and I never looked back after that. I cannot be a casual member of anything; I now write this as a ballet director and the president of the club, both roles that have changed my life.
Not only has the club brought me leadership opportunities and countless dance moves, but it has also given me my best friend, Tessa Specchio. I think the Dunkin’ on College Avenue knows our coffee orders by heart at this point, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I have been changed for good.
One of the hardest parts of college for me has been being away from my family — especially my dogs. Every accomplishment would not have been possible without my biggest supporters, and for that, I am eternally grateful.
As I finish my chapter at Butler, flipping to a gap semester filled with apartment hunting, lots of naps, wonderful adventures and, hopefully, a job, a cocktail of bittersweet emotions sits in my stomach. While there is no doubt in my mind that Butler has brought some of the most important memories and relationships, I am anxiously awaiting what else my path holds.
College has taught me to cherish every moment, no matter how monumental or minute: every iced coffee, all of the articles published, the bows after a show, the research studies run and every second spent with the people I love.
To round out this Academy Award acceptance speech for my college career, I want to thank my family for their love, my friends for all of the laughter and my four beds for the countless hours napped.
