Welcome to Week 1, Mirror! It’s Aditi.
It’s the start of spring term, and coming out of a particularly frigid winter, the warmth promised by spring is enticing. Winter felt monotonous. I found myself stuck in a rut of painfully slow and chaotic days, and identical, fleeting weeks. I kind of stalled on working on my own personal goals, from maintaining my relationships to carving out time to stop and breathe. I was glad to take a couple of weeks away to clear my head and start fresh.
It’s funny how dramatically everyone’s mood shifts at the slightest increase in temperature. This past Saturday was an unusually warm day back home in Connecticut. I brought a book and a blanket out to my backyard and sat there for hours, alternating between reading and staring up at the sky. It was a nice opportunity to reflect on my time at Dartmouth so far. This spring is my sixth term on — my halfway point. Each term feels like a different era of my life, shaped by the new people I encountered and the frustrating assignments I endured, led by an entirely distinct version of myself. Spring is a bright and shiny new possibility. I wonder who I’ll meet, what I’ll learn, who I’ll be.
It isn’t quite as warm as I’d hoped just yet, but I’m still glad to be back on campus, to catch up with friends who have been off and gone and around the world, to dive headfirst into a fresh round of classes and academic opportunities. I’m especially excited to take the reins of Mirror. I’m proud to have been entrusted with the responsibility, and my co-editors and I are ready to get started.
Hey, Mirror, it’s Aubrey.
It’s the third day of spring term and I’m already feeling overwhelmed by work. I spent eighteen hours driving to campus with my mom this weekend, and had an exorbitant amount of time to think about my goals for this term. When I wasn’t blasting musicals (a classic for a long car ride) or reading a good book (shout out to “Sunrise on the Reaping”), I spent my time looking out the window, watching as the green hills and mountains of Tennessee turned into the cold and icy New Hampshire landscape. I have to admit I was hoping for warmer weather for our first week of term. I’ve been spoiled by 75 degree sunny days, and as I stepped out of the car in Connecticut to take a much-needed break from driving, I shivered in the chilly weather.
Although dismayed at the cold, I was reminded of my excitement for another term at Dartmouth. From seeing friends who were off in the winter to taking new classes on campus, I am looking forward to this new term! I hope to spend more time with myself this spring: reading for thirty minutes each night, watching an episode of a show when I can, journaling in my junk journal. Really, anything that I can do to decompress is a welcome reprieve at the end of a long day. Hopefully these practices will last for the rest of the term.
As I enter my first term as an editor for Mirror, I look forward to seeing all the amazing pieces that will be written this spring! Noelle, Aditi and I are so excited to be your editors this term and I’m eagerly anticipating all the great work that will be published over the next ten weeks.
Hi, Mirror! Happy Week One. It’s Noelle.
This spring feels like a breath of fresh air. Last year, I stayed off campus for as long as possible, needing a break from the 10-week drain. I explored Barcelona and met some of my closest friends on campus, worked through a beautiful spring in Atlanta, and reacclimated during sophomore summer. Coming back to Dartmouth this year, I’ve recontextualized my experience; by stepping off campus, I figured out how to maintain a healthy relationship with academia. Still, this spring feels busier than ever. I find the chaos exciting, maybe because I have so few of these terms left.
Of all of the commitments, excitements, and events to juggle this spring, I’m most excited to spend time with the staff and stories of Mirror. I know working with my co-editors and writers will spark ingenuity that will make this term one to remember!
This week in Mirror, we put a spotlight on spring. One writer reflects on the complexities of spring break and aligning schedules, while another explores how students form and maintain New Year’s resolutions as we enter a new Dartmouth term. Finally, we get to know a few of our Mirror writers through a series of spring break-themed icebreakers.
