During my isolated freshman year, my eyes darted around the wildly outdated MyWSU homepage and landed on a curious blue link called “The Sunflower.”
I clicked on this link, which took me to the front page of The Sunflower’s website, and I saw this column resting at the top: “The Sunflower’s letter to recommend Jay Golden.”
Within this column is a defense of former Wichita State President Jay Golden after his supposed resignation (more like firing).
The column itself was flanked on every side by stories of American Athletic Conference sports, College of Fine Arts productions and student government clashes.
It was real news.
Now, I more than dabbled in high school journalism, but I could never write stories like these. I was too awkward and shy and certainly didn’t have the skills required.
Well, here I am four years later with two years at The Sunflower under my belt after I finally mustered up the courage to fill out a staff application that I flirted with during my freshman and sophomore years. (I’ll also extend thanks to Dr. Fran Connor, for without his final push, I would have never stepped foot into Elliott Hall.)
What was only supposed to be a job writing movie reviews, a qualification that I so deeply harped upon during my interview (sorry, Jaycie), quickly snowballed into a phone call with our sports editor as I was boarding a plane back to Wichita from winter break in 2022.
What do you mean you want me to be the sports editor?
For that very rough semester at the sports desk, I am deeply apologetic to the Wichita sports community and grateful for the opportunity to overcome my own anxieties for the sake of the paper and to Madeline Bell, who was a rockstar photographer in my many times of need.
This past year as managing editor has been far better, and I’ve finally learned that while I really like watching sports, I can’t stand to write about them.
If I could describe my time with The Sunflower with one morbid metaphor, it would be drowning in the deep end. And I’m thankful for that opportunity, too.
Because I couldn’t have been drowning with more talented, kind and wickedly funny people — Jaycie, Mia, Sascha, Thy, Natalie, Melanie and Kristy.
You all have had an impact on me that I will not be able to express in words years from now. Just know that I love you all, and I’m always rooting for you (even when it sounds like I’m not).
While I’m probably still too 3 a.m. infomercial for The Sunflower’s Sunday night, HBO primetime status, I deeply encourage you, reader, to take chances on yourself, even if you never quite fit the status.
They say journalism is a calling, and here I am, hanging up the phone again.
Yet it still rings.
