Rambler Volume 11 no. 4

rambler the

Veritas Ensis Noster.

FREE THE IMPRISONED BOOKS February 8, 2014- Vol. 11, No. 4

Photo credit to Stephen Hyland

In This Issue...

Rambler: Pronunciation: \ram-blər\ Function: noun Date: c. 2002 1. A student organization determined to present truth and withhold nothing, discussing a variety of subjects such as administration, morality, literature, politics, and faith.

the rambler

An Independent Student Journal Christendom College Veritas Ensis Noster

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Lauren Enk

News & Opinion

Science & Technology

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16 PRINT YOUR DREAM HOUSE

WHEN HE CALLS TO ME I WILL ANSWER: MY CALLING TO CHRISTENDOM

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT Daniel Haas LAYOUT EDITOR Marilyn Charba and Lindsay Harman

Arts & Culture

Prose & Poetry

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17 THE MUG BRIGADE

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SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR Sean Shanahan

ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR Austin Leavitt

PHOTO EDITOR Stephen Hyland

17 ECHOES FROM THE VALLEY

RUGBY FOR DUMMIES

by Joe Brizek

18 THE GLADE

Feature 10

by Madeleine Murphy

FREE THE IMPRISONED BOOKS!

The Last Word

by Rachael Hoover

19 GOODBYE F-DRIVE, GOOD RIDDANCE?

Faith & Reason 12

MEDIA COORDINATOR Cecilia Flagg COPY EDITOR Margaret Santschi

by Connor Coyne

by Joe Dalimata

POETRY & PROSE EDITOR Maddy Murphy FACULTY ADVISOR Dr. Patrick Keats

WALTER MITTY AND HIKIKOMORI

by Lauren Enk

NEWS & POLITICS EDITOR Maria Bonvissuto

FAITH & REASON EDITOR Peter Deucher

by Sean Shanahan

by Cecily Lowe

FREE THE IMPRISONED BOOKS!

CHRIST AND YOUR COMFORT ZONE

by Galilee Riggio

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WHO’S YOUR BEST FRIEND?

by John J. Adams

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CONTRIBUTORS

PRO-LIFE REVISITED: THE MARCH FOR LIFE 2014

by Abagail Wilkenson

Cecily Lowe, Lauren Enk, Joe Dalimata, Rachael Hoover, Galilee Riggio, John J. Adams, Abagail Whimmer, Sean Shanahan, Connor Coyne, Madeleine Murphy and Joe Brizek.

Our Mission Statement

The Rambler and its staff are dedicated to training the next generation of Catholic journalists and intellectuals. We prize the liberal arts education received from Christendom College and write about the news, arts, culture, faith, and reason from this gained perspective. We believe we will play an essential part in a renaissance of new leaders, journalists, and communicators for the 21st century.

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To Contact The Rambler:

134 Christendom Drive Front Royal, VA 22630 E-mail: rambler.editor@gmail.com Web: www.therambleronline.org Follow The Rambler on Facebook!

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COLLEGIATE-NETWORK

A six issue subscription to The Rambler may be obtained through a donation of $25 or more. All contributions go to support The Rambler.

Editor’s Corner

Dear Readers,

Welcome back to Spring Semester! It is with excitement and gratitude that I follow in the footsteps of the talented Katie Brizek in the position of Editor-in-Chief of The Rambler. Looking back at the long line of respected and ambitious editors-in-chief, from John Jalsevac (now editor of LifeSiteNews.com) to the inimitable Savanna Buckner, I realize that I have, indeed, big shoes to fill. I’m certainly looking forward to the challenges and experiences this semester will bring.

As we move through the first part of the spring semester, it can be tempting to let our enthusiasm wind down, especially when the seeminglyendless chill of winter weather begins to freeze the fervor of last fall. By midFebruary, it grows increasingly difficult to drag ourselves out of bed each cold morning to face another routine day of classes and note-taking.

It is particularly in these dull winter days that we must turn to the strength and hope that can be found in a fundamental gratitude for the good things and people around us on this campus. I say this especially to the second-semester freshmen--do not let anyone or any experience kill your joy and enthusiasm! Count up the blessings we have, and renew your appreciation for why you came here and the ideals we are meant to strive for together as a Catholic college community, imperfect as we are.

But that does not mean to say that you should not voice your concerns, opinions, or suggestions to build up and improve the community-far from it. Whether a freshman or a senior about to say farewell to our home of four years, writing for The Rambler is an effective way to instigate the discussions necessary to help us grow and develop. Please take advantage of the unique opportunity offered by our student newspaper and make your voice heard!

Regards,

Lauren Enk Editor-in-Chief

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News Briefs

Dorm Wars has is officially underway after a rousing opening ceremony on Sunday, February 2nd. Eight teams will be competing for the honor of winning this annual competition. Events for Dorm Wars will happen all month, ending on Sunday, March 2nd with the final Regatta-building and race competition. May the best dorm win!

On Monday, Pope Francis had a meeting with the head of state of the countty of Saoa, Tui Atua Tupua Tamasese Efi. They talked about the economic and social issues of the country, as well as the many ways in which the Catholic Church has played a large role in the lives of the Samoan people.

Former Virginia governor Bob McDonnell was indicted in January for corruption charges having to do with receiving money from a donor.

On Monday, a judge gave the order that McDonnell and his wife were forbidden from discussing the details of his upcoming trial with family or friends. McDonnell’s trial will take place in July of this year.

The pro-life movement has cause for rejoicing: a recent report released by the Guttmacher Institute shows that the overall abortion rate in America has been declining and that the nationwide abortion rate in 2011 was the lowest the United States had seen in thirty years.

On Friday, February 7th, the twenty-second Winter Olympic Games will commence in Sochi, Russia. Preparation for the much-anticipated event has been plagued by construction problems, delays, and political protests.

Will these Olympics run as smoothly as hoped?

The Debate Society held its first debate on Sunday, January 26th.

The resolution being debated was “Facebook is harmful to authentic community.” The con side won the evening.

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News & Opinion

When He Calls to me, I Will Answer: My Calling to Christendom by

Cecily Lowe, ‘16

Last semester, my “devout atheist” aunt came up to Christendom and took me out to lunch. During the meal, as might be expected, our conversation revolved around college. Generally, I enjoyed it, as it gave me an excuse to elaborate on my friends and activities, something I am always eager to do. However, the low point came for me when she remarked, “You’re so sheltered! I mean, my school had coed bathrooms!”

Having always been a very insecure person, her patronizing remark threw me into doubts, for far from the first time since my arrival here as a freshman. I had, long ago, come to the (subconscious) conclusion that I wanted to be sheltered from certain worldly evils when I decided to come here. Nonetheless, had I truly made the best decision? I could not see how the answer could be anything but ‘yes,’ but the question of ‘why’ wasn’t something I could immediately figure out.

I first fell in love with Christendom when I attended the summer program as a rising high school senior. Naturally, the camp’s low-pressure classes, abundance of fun activities and almost-too-nice-to-be-true people swayed my opinion favorably. However, what may have appealed to me more than all else, was, as I later excitedly wrote to a mentor, “Their slogan is ‘Breathe Catholic,’ and they live up to it!” So, beyond a doubt I had an inherent desire to “breathe” the Catholic faith. But, could being utterly surrounded by Catholicism be handicapping me for later in life, as my aunt believed?

Thus, her tongue-in-cheek remark gave me something serious to contemplate. What had living in this little Catholic bubble done for me, specifically, that another college would not?

This query seemed to have multiple answers. To begin with, since I came here, nourished by a “diet” of frequent reception of the sacraments, praying more both in company and alone, and being more conscious of God’s role in everything as a whole, I grew in my faith, both in love of God and understanding of the truth.

Moreover, having good friends also seeking to grow in virtue was and remains a huge help to me. While I have devout Catholic friends outside of Christendom, freshman year was the first time that I saw others engaging in activities like private prayer on a regular basis, and in turn sharing their faith with me. The benefits of sharing beliefs are myriad. For example, one of my professors remarked once that he would be unable to teach as openly if we weren’t all Catholic. Just as importantly, for that same reason, we Photo credit to Stephen Hyland

are all expected to know and acknowledge good and evil for what they truly are, rather than succumbing to the modern rejection of truth in favor of relativism. With peer reinforcement, real values are more likely to be strengthened over false ones.

On a more personal note, during my senior year of high school, I went through a period of seriously doubting the Faith—not any specific teachings, more a wondering of “There are so many schools of thought out there. What if I’ve chosen the wrong one?” God must not have seen the need to test me for too long, since the doubts ended before I matriculated at college. However, the fact that I’ve never had a recurrence on the same scale is something I attribute both to my spiritual growth and my friends here.

Additionally, a more universal benefit of spiritual unanimity is that the more one grows in faith and morals, the more one can share those beliefs with others.

It has the effect of exponential growth; enrich one and enrich a dozen more, two people, two dozen extra, and so on. These are just some of the gifts God bestowed on me through coming to Christendom.

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At any rate, in this modern age, to be sheltered pretty much requires living under a rock for one’s whole life.

I’m not sure if I will never know all of the ways coming here has benefited me until the next life, but I do know that He couldn’t mean for me to die a moral death through observing and absorbing the bad actions of others.

Furthermore, there was one other factor my aunt’s statement did not take into account. Just because we at Christendom may not act the same way as students at secular colleges doesn’t mean we are entirely ignorant of the evils of the world. Personally, as my mother, my two siblings, and I, are the only Catholics in our entire extended family, I have seen firsthand evils caused by sin. At any rate, in this modern age, to be so sheltered pretty much requires living under a rock for one’s whole life. As Katie Brizek discussed in a previous issue, wickedness can rear its ugly head at the flick of a radio switch.

Coming to Christendom, I believe, was a step God called me to take. Though the environment may be, as my aunt put it, “sheltered,” it is also strengthening and even empowering in unexpected ways. I hope, upon graduation, it will have empowered me to follow God’s voice once more, and, just as the college’s mission states, to help restore all things in Christ.

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Arts & Culture

WALTER MITTY HIKIKOMORI AND

By Lauren Enk, ‘14

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Modernity offers us isolation of a kind that was never before possible. If we find real life too prosaic, too complex, or too dissatisfying, we can recede behind our phones, behind our Facebook newsfeed, behind the latest fan-dom, and thus form a mask of disconnection that robs us of authentic human communication.

Tapocketa, tapocketa, tapocketa—the mental soundtrack has become so acute that Japanese psychologists have had to invent constantly playing in the action scenes for James Thurber’s daya term, hikikomori, for a growing portion of the population who dreaming hero in his 1939 New York Times short story, “The Secret never leave their homes. The hikikomori disown all social interacLife of Walter Mitty.” The imaginative protagonist turns every daily tion, but psychologists aren’t really sure why. Sometimes it’s because situation into a more exciting one in his head; behind the wheel he hikikomori dislike social or family pressure and thus withdraw from thinks himself the dauntless captain of a ship in the Arctic; when the world, but sometimes there doesn’t seem to be a clear cause. waiting for his wife, a fearless WWII soldier—daring, dashing, These individuals, usually in their 20s and 30s but increasingly in debonair! the middle-aged demographic, lose the willpower to engage in social

At first, it’s comic and a little cute, until you realize Mitty’s life; they spend their time on entertainment in isolation from other uncanny capacity for constantly zoning-out translates into a terrible real human beings. They even order their groceries to be delivered real-world problem. Mitty doesn’t interact with other human beings to their door, so they never have to step outside. in any way like the way he behaves in his mind. He’s a day-dreamer, Because hikikomori are hidden away from society, the socially-inept, cowering, confused, shy, absent-minded, resentful or numbers on this growing problem are necessarily guesstimates. Low neglectful of figures come in at 700,000, the people As little respect as I have for Ben Stiller (star of such tasteless trash as Tropic but some analysts place the in his life; a Thunder), I have to give him credit for reviving this story at this particular time. number over one million. doormat used

And this isn’t simand abused ply a problem in Japan. by others—a far cry from the hero of his fancy.

Throughout the world, from Italy to Australia to the United States,

Charming, ironic, and a little tragic, Thurber’s story social, economic, and technological factors are making it easier and inspired Danny Kaye’s quirky 1947 film—and then, at the tail end easier for first-world individuals to withdraw from the sticky mess of of 2013, Ben Stiller’s eclectic adventure movie. As little respect as I communal life and social engagement, and live more consistently in have for Ben Stiller (star of such tasteless trash as Tropic Thunder), I increasingly virtual or isolated worlds rather than engage in human have to give him credit for reviving this story at this particular time. interaction.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is a story that resonates keenly with

Which you probably saw the last time you were waiting in men and women struggling with the problems and temptations of line and were too busy playing Candy Crush on your phone to say modern isolation—a problem Stiller highlights by having his hero hello to the person next to you. attempt to contact his co-worker crush via a dating website, instead

Communication and interpersonal relationships are part of speaking to her in person, when he sees her every day. of what make man the unique spiritual, physical, and social being

Advances in technology have acutely aggravated social that he is. But in order to communicate, a man must be present, not struggles with community and communication. Virtual communisimply physically but mentally and spiritually, to the people around ties like Facebook have supplemented—for some people, almost him. In our routine, boxed-off, work-all-day-and-entertain-yourselfreplacing—in-person social contact. For every post you’ve “liked” by-screen-light-at-night society, human relationships become imon FB, how many individuals have you smiled at—let alone spoken paired, break down, or cease functioning altogether when we begin to—in person? Or even over the phone? living more in virtual realities—our dreams, or the little entertain In Japan, social isolation aided and abetted by technology ment bubble we form around us, composed of time hiding behind a

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Arts & Culture

The effect of all this is to draw Mitty out of his day-dreaming world and force him to interact more perfectly with the real world, with the real people and events going on around him. Their potential, their vitality, their ultimate significance suddenly spring to life for him—as in the Stiller version, when everything from a dent in a piano to a gift from a friend to listening his mother when she talks to him in the produce aisle suddenly becomes filled with critical meaning to the pattern of his life.

Personal transformation comes through a challenging change in perspective, a shift in how we orient our outlook on the world. If we find ourselves so absorbed in entertainment, or so disinterested in the people and happenings around us that we are incapable of seeing the gloriously exciting in the real life we are living—then it’s time to step outside, Mitty.

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screen, or an imaginary world from our favorite TV show.

Modernity offers us isolation of a kind that was never before possible. If we find real life too prosaic, too complex, or too dissatisfying, we can recede behind our phones, behind our Facebook newsfeed, behind the latest fan-dom, and thus form a mask of disconnection that robs us of authentic human communication. We have become a society of Walter Mittys.

In all versions of Mitty’s story, it can be tempting to blame other people or external factors for his distance from reality: his dominating wife, his abusive boss, or social handicaps like his shyness. Or even the fact that his daily life is simply more boring than his dream life. Who could blame him for preferring visions of himself in an asphalt-smashing super-hero battle to the reality of being simply a cog in a corporate machine no one cares about?

But realistically, Mitty is most to blame, and he needs a drastic change in outlook. Both of the movie versions do what the short story never does, as if by artistic instinct the screenwriters knew what Mitty needed: they throw the day-dreaming Mitty into a real-life, hands-on, adrenalin-pumping, life-threatening, self-discovering adventure.

Advances in technology have acutely aggravated social struggles with community and communication.

Photos credit to 20th Centry Fox, “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.” (2013) 7 | seven

Arts & Culture

RUGBY

s e i m um

d r o f by

Joe Dalimata, ‘17

Here at Christendom there is, as at most colleges, more afforded for the scoring team to make a conversion (place kick), than one connotation to the word “season” - that which is ancounting as a further two points. After a team scores each team renounced by the presence, color (or lack thereof ) of foliage, and turns to their respective halves of the field and the ball is dropkicked another more conventional meaning, heralded by the type of ball to the opposition by the team that was just scored on. One of the being kicked, thrown, or bounced around campus. But at Christenmost basic points of rugby is that, aside from penalties, play never dom there comes a season that is gaining popularity among sport stops. This characteristic is what causes the “ruck”. The ruck occurs enthusiasts of America, and for some here the term “spring” is when a player is tackled and his teammates stand over him and the semi-synonymous with the word “rugby” (much to the chagrin of ball in an attempt keep the opposing team from gaining possession. the resident baseball fans).

Another unique aspect is that the ball cannot be thrown

Yet as this season comes along and becomes a subject of forward; doing so results in a penalty. The only way to move the conversation I have come to realize that there are many who still ball forward is to kick it or run with it. When the team is on the have either a football-adulterated understanding of the sport, or offensive they are divided into two groups - forwards and backs. The none at all. The seemingly overwhelming impression of rugby forwards are generally used to stabilize play and maintain control of among Americans is that is a British form of football with few rules the ball. The ball is then passed to the backs who run a play that is and less protective gear; the point of which is to get the ball where designed to spread out the defensive line of the opposing team and you want it to be, come hell or high water, maybe hurting a few create a scoring opportunity. When a team is on the defensive the people in the process just for good measure. I am going to attempt entire team is on defense, which consists of the team being spread to remedy “It’s a tough sport, a lot of physical contact, but there is no violence. There’s great out in an advancing this. loyalty and respect. Playing rugby is tiring. It’s no easy walk. And I think it’s useful to flat line across the

field attempting to strengthen character and one’s will.”

force the opposing ~ Pope Francis

team back, if not at

There were many forms of the game dating back to around least hold their own ground.

1400. Yet it wasn’t until the 1820’s that the game came to have it’s

One characteristic of rugby that always seems to arouse own twist at the English boy’s boarding school called Rugby. The the curiosity of spectators is the scrum. The scrum, which occurs story unfolds in a letter from Matthew Bloxam, a former pupil of as a result of certain penalties, is formed when the forwards of each Rugby school, to the Rugby school paper, “Meteor”. A young athteam bind up into pods of eight players and, putting their shoulders lete, by the name of William Webb Ellis, while engaged in a game together, push against each other in an attempt to gain possession of of rugby in 1823 made a providential transgression of the rules. At the ball, which has been placed on the ground between them. When some point during the game, as we often see in soccer today, the ball one or the other of the team has gained possession by hooking the happened hit young William in the chest. He did not react in the ball back toward their team, a designated player then passes the expected manner. He did in fact “with fine disregard for the rules of ball to the backs, who run a play. Another odd occurrence of the rugby, as played in his time at Rugby, first took the ball in his arms game is the lineout, which occurs when the ball goes out of bounds. and ran with it, thus originating the distinctive feature of the Rugby The lineout is a formation of opposing forwards in parallel lines at game.” I can only imagine how the opposition reacted. They would right angles to the sideline, forming a tunnel into which the ball is have not stood for such an outrage, being hot blooded young Engthrown, at which point each of the teams lift a designated man in an lishman. They would have tackled him to the ground and reclaimed attempt to catch the ball. the so misused ball. William’s teammates would then have revenged There is so much more to this great sport that I feel that their so abused player and reclaimed the ball, and so on and so this little review does it a grave injustice. There are a great many forth. Thus rugby was born. more things about rugby one needs to know in order to under Each team plays 15 athletes at a time, making rugby the stand this unique sport fully, but what I have written will suffice sport fielding the most players at any one time. The game is divided for now. I will close with some words from our Holy Father, when into two 40-minute halves with a ten-minute half time. The ball, he addressed the Italian and Argentinean rugby teams: “It’s a tough oval shaped and about twice the size of a football, is thrown from sport, a lot of physical contact, but there is no violence. There’s great waist level either laterally or backwards. Scoring, called a “try” in loyalty and respect. Playing rugby is tiring. It’s no easy walk. And I rugby, consists of placing the ball in the opponents try (end) zone. think it’s useful to strengthen character and one’s will.”

Each try is counted as five points after which an opportunity is 8| Eight

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Arts & Culture

Photos credit to Christendom College and Josh Van Hecke

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Feature

The Rambler

By Rachel Hoover, ‘17

FREE THE IMPRISONED BOOKS!

Ah, February: the year is still young, and it’s time for hundreds of old books, movies, songs, plays, and pictures to be released from the copyright constraints allowed for their long-dead authors into the public domain, where they can be shared and used by anyone! Right? Wrong. Once again, the beginning of this new year brought absolutely nothing into the public domain in our lovely Land of the Free.

Before 1978, US copyright law stipulated that the author of a creative work – book, movie, play, song, or even scientific

copyright one time, for a total of 56 years.

After that, the work would become part of public domain, meaning that anyone who wanted to could republish it, perform it, create new works based on it, digitize and preserve it, etc, and make money by doing so if they wished. This enabled authors and artists to make a living from what they created, and then give their works over to become part of the culture. After all, money isn't the main point when it comes to art – having an impact on the world is. However, after 1978, the laws have changed. Due mainly to lobby-

Students stand bewildered at the sight of Empty Shelves study – could keep the work under copyright (be the sole owner of it so that only he or she can make a profit from it) for a period of 28 years, and could then choose to renew that 10 | Ten

ing by large companies such as Disney, works are now under copyright for 70 years after the death of the author. Only those who have paid for the rights to use the works can go on

using them.

Why is this a problem? Because it means that American culture and creativity is being starved of materials to work with – old books, movies, music,

"American culture and creativity is being starved of materials to work with.” etc, which are moldering on shelves somewhere that talented enthusiasts can't rescue them. If the copyright laws hadn't been changed, all works from 1957 and before would have been in the public domain as of January 1 this year. 1957 was a good year – Marilyn Monroe and Elvis were still around and performing; West Side Story debuted on Broadway; and Dr. Seuss's The Cat in the Hat was published, as well as lots of other influential works. Imagine if anyone with talent and enthusiasm could use The Chronicles of Narnia or How the Grinch Stole Christmas to make a movie, play, spinoff series, ice sculpture tribute, or anything they wanted, without fear of a lawsuit! With the old copyright law, that would have been perfectly possible.

All creative works build on past creative works; all artists are influenced by their own favorite artists. With the old copyright rule, fuller use could be made of this natural creative influence. After the works had finished benefiting the original author, they could benefit many

Feature

Photos credit to Stephen Hyland more people. Unfortunately, nothing new will enter the public domain in the US until 2019, and even then the works that we would have acquired this year won't show up until 2053. Not to mention the awesome works like Pippi Longstocking and It's a Wonderful Life that were in the public domain until the 1978 law pulled them out of it, or the “orphan works” that are legally under copyright, but have no discernible copyright holder, and are therefore out of print indefinitely. Copyright was invented as a method of fostering creativity – now, it's inhibiting creativity.

We are being deprived of the amazing works of art and literature that previous generations have created, that have become such an influential part of our culture.

In this modern age, we could be doing so much with technology to promote and spread great works. We could be scanning and digitizing works from the 40's and 50's to preserve them, putting them on the internet so that people all over the world can read them, and printing them cheaply so that even people without

a computer or tablet can access them easily.

Instead, we're letting things stay locked up and restricted by big publishing companies that sometimes abandon great material from the past because it can't make them any money. The point of copyright is to help the author or artist, but you can't take it with you 70 years after you're dead. The newer copyright laws are now simply a moneymaking tool for big, influential companies that do nothing to serve individual creative

people. What if books weren't abandoned or trapped for no reason for 70 long years after the author's death? I think it could make our country a better, happier, more creative country. It could improve our culture as more people get easy access to great literature and art. And, it could encourage new great works as people use the material of other works to enrich their own creativity. Let's free the imprisoned books!

"Copyright was invented as a method of fostering creativity: now, it's inhibiting creativ=ity.”

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Arts & Culture

CHRIST AND YOUR COMFORT–ZONE

By Galilee Riggio, ‘16

That line in the sand that we draw between what we want to do and what can be done is usually called our comfort-zone.

For some people, it’s a very tight bubble around them, that, when popped, causes trauma and stress. For others, it’s an all-encompassing globe. Everyone’s got one, everyone builds their own comfortzone and decides how much that comfort-zone controls their lives.

The comfort-zone from a Catholic perspective is best described as Opportunities. Opportunities to be humble, opportunities to serve, opportunities to do what Christ is calling you to do and not stop to count your losses, opportunities to leave what you’ve grown up with and move on to what you’re called to, and opportunities to be the Catholic that Christ desires you to be.

Stepping outside of our comfort-zone is taking these opportunities and acting on them.

There are three levels to the “comfortzone” as we know it.

The first level is pretty simple. It’s the level that I like to call Crowd Control. Ever been to a really big party, with all sorts of people—strange people that smile too much? There wasn’t a lot to do but stand around and eat and socialize, or admire the streamers, Christmas lights, and confetti. You definitely have if you were ever a freshman at a Christendom dance, and you most likely have experienced that feeling of being lost in a crowd. For many people,

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The next time we draw a line in the sand that dictates what we are comfortable with, think about what Christ—or one of the Saints, depending on the situation—would do, then just do it.

crowds are outside their comfort-zone. Any group of people over 4 or 5 people is enough to give many people anxiety. Even smaller groups can cause anxiety when you don’t know anyone around you past simple introductions. These are good reasons to stay well

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inside your comfort-zone, right?

Eh…not really. Mingling well with a crowd is a life-skill you won’t regret acquiring, but it is also something that Christ specifically did Himself. All throughout His life, Christ was followed by large crowds. In Matthew 14, we even get a number—five thousand, not including women and children. In Luke 8, Christ was so surrounded by people that the apostles were confused when Christ asked, “Who touched My cloak?” Christ seemed to always be in a crowd, and yet, He was never lost in one. Imagine Him smiling, greeting people, touching outstretched hands, holding babies. Christ was in tune with everyone around Him. His perfect humility caused Him to feel connected with each and every person who came near him. When we sit in the crowd at Holy Mass, it’s always a nice thing to remember Christ in the crowd. He is in tune with you, and you with Him. No matter how many people are sitting around you, Christ is looking right at you.

The second kind of comfort-zone is one I like to call You & That Other Guy. You know this one, the comfort-zone we all Photos credit to Stephen Hyland feel when we’re talking one-on-one to someone we don’t know, don’t like, or have no interest in. We’re faced with the same choice over and over, almost every day—do we stay and listen, or do we leave? It is often outside of our comfort-zone to even talk to someone who has a differing opinion from ours. It is outside of our comfort-zone to evangelize strangers we meet. It is outside our comfort-zone to accept correction with humility when we are wrong. It is outside our comfort-zone to correct others when it is our duty and responsibility to do so.

Once again, Christ shows us where His comfort-zone boundaries lie. In John 5, Christ approached and spoke to a man who was lying near the Pool of Bethesda. Christ healed the man of his infirmities, yes, but Christ healed the man’s soul first. We should step outside of our comfort-zone and help to heal the souls of those around us. Jesus still did not hesitate to help the invalid,

Faith & Reason even though he knew the Pharisee’s would rebuke for what He had done. In fact, Jesus did not hesitate to proclaim the truth, lose friends, and make enemies.

The final type of comfort-zone is You & Yourself. This is the most challenging comfort-zone to overcome. This comfort-zone affects our habits, both good and bad. It dictates how often we pray, where and when we pray (the dreaded “saying grace in a crowded restaurant”), and who we pray with. It’s the things we aspire to do, and it’s the things we never dare attempt.

Christ had the most wonderful example of a You &Yourself comfort-zone. He desired to be with people, and also desired to go off alone to pray. He prayed, He worked, and He fulfilled the mission that God the Father had entrusted to Him. We too can fulfill the mission that God sends us to do, but we have to be ready to step outside our comfort-zone to do it. We don’t have to look any further than Christ to see just how extensive our You & Yourself comfort-zone should be.

Christ is not the only example of a good You & Yourself comfort-zone. Zacchaeus overcame his comfort-zone and courageously climbed a tree in order to see Jesus in Luke 19. No matter

what anyone thought of him, no matter who laughed, Zacchaeus still climbed. Saint Joan of Arc was also considered delusional by most of the people around her. However, she stepped way outside of her comfort-zone to save France. Saint Francis of Assisi abandoned a wealthy lifestyle for Christ. He knew that Christ offered more joy in life than financial stability ever could. Mother Teresa went so far outside her comfort-zone that she won the Nobel Peace prize. These saints, and many others, all demonstrate Christ-like comfort-zones.

How well in our own lives do we show the world a Christlike comfort-zone? Have we ever turned away from someone in need because of our comfort-zone? Have we ever neglected our duties or ignored the truth due to our comfort-zone? Can we, as Catholics, really be called imitators of Christ when we think about the boundaries of our own comfort-zone?

Christ calls us all to follow in His footsteps. He calls us to live as He did, and have His same comfort-zone. We should reflect often on how far outside of our comfort-zone we are going to live as Catholics. The next time we draw a line in the sand that dictates what we are comfortable with, think about what Christ—or one of the Saints, depending on the situation—would do, then just do it.

13| Thirteen

Faith & Reason

Who’s Your Best Friend?

By John J. Adams, ‘17

Photos credit to Stephen Hyland

When we call someone “best friend” we must be using the phrase to mean a person who is a “friend”, but when we use the word “friend” we are indicating that the person in question is merely an acquaintance or friend of usefulness or pleasantness, a friend of utility.

Now as Catholics, who is our best friend? No one is of more usefulness to us nor more pleasant to be with nor wills us more good then God. Is God then our “best friend”? But we cannot reciprocate that usefulness, pleasantness or good will. In that case He is not our best friend because He gives more than we can return. We are not giving equally. But it is not His giving more and useless that we cannot be friends. According to Aristotle, “In all friendships which involve the superiority of one of the partners, the affection, too, must be proportionate: the better and more useful partner should receive more affection than He gives, and similarly for the superior partner in each case.”

A friendship between a superior and his inferior is possible. Is God a superior partner? Certainly He is. All we would If Saint Padre Pio is correct, then God, who is Love, has deemed the need to do is love Him more than He loves us, since we can do no more. But God is Love. How can our love He has made us capable of giving to Him sufficient. love even compare to God, the source of all love. In this case too, the friendship is impossible.

First of all, what is a friend? According to Aristotle, there are After noting that it is possible for friendship to exist between a supethree motives for friendship: what is good, what is pleasant, and what rior being and an inferior being, Aristotle acknowledges that perfect is useful. Aristotle defines friends as men who “have good will for one friendship can exist between God and men. His criterion, as stated beanother, must each wish for the good of the other on the basis of one fore, is that “the affection must be proportionate.” The question then of the three motives mentioned, and must each be aware of one anbecomes can we love God proportionately? God is Love, who could other’s good will.” Pleasantness and usefulness are not long lasting, so love more than He? We can love our superior but we are incapable any friendship based on those motives would indubitably fail. Friendof loving our superior? Aristotle can say no more on the subject; his ship based on what is good, Aristotle says, is the only long lasting and gods are entirely different from our God. But what of those who can most beneficial friendship to have. Good people who are friends will claim a truly intimate relationship with God? What can a saint tell us? one another’s good, good meaning both health and virtue. No man Saint Padre Pio said, “No pilgrim soul can worthily love God. But who is really a virtuous person would wish to send his friend to hell or when a soul does everything possible and trusts in divine mercy, why even to break his arm. Lastly, friendship based on good fulfills all three would Jesus reject such a spirit? Has He not commanded us to love Aristotelian motives as good people are generally pleasant and useful God according to our strength? If you have given and consecrated for maintaining or developing virtue. everything to God, why be afraid?” It is true that we cannot love God

Now let’s take a scenario. A man “Bob” has four friends in more than He loves us. But we are capable of loving God, and He the Aristotelian sense of perfect friends. But one friend “Jeb” is his asks only what we can give. If Saint Padre Pio is correct, then God, best friend. “Best” being the greatest of three or more things would who is Love, has deemed the love He has made us capable of giving to mean this “best friend” is a greater friend than the other three friends.

Him sufficient. Thus the love we give God, according to our strength, That must mean Jeb is the most virtuous, most pleasant, most useful is proportionate to the love He gives us. It is certainly not greater, nor to Bob and wills the best of health and virtue to Bob, who of course is it of more worth, it is only enough. It is no wonder that any saint reciprocates to Jeb the same amount of virtue, usefulness, etc. So can go out to the desert and live for years without seeing one human what then? Do Bob’s other three friends will him less good than they face, let alone the face of a friend. Aristotle says, “No one would can or ought to? If they share perfect friendship with Bob, one of the choose to live without friends, even if he had all other goods.” But a four cannot rise above the others as they all will him equal good, are saint would, because a saint has the greatest of all goods, friendship equally pleasant and useful, and are equally virtuous. The concluwith God. No one can do better than to be best friends with Love sion must be that Bob has one friend, Jeb, and three acquaintances or itself. friends of usefulness or pleasantness. Our terms seem to be confused.

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14 | Fourteen

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A young lady once told me that a certain friend of hers was her best friend. This comment in itself is harmless enough, but nevertheless it struck me as odd. Wondering why she had singled out this one friend, I began to question her on her relations with her other friends. I did not think she wanted to call more than one person her best friend because she knew very well that would be a contradiction. And yet she seemed also aware of the peculiarity of preferring one friend over another; why would she bother being with any of her friends if that one friend was always better? So she gave names or titles to her friends that would seem complementary, such as “adopted sister” and “really good friend” and so on. We got stuck around the fifth friend and the subject was dropped. But I continued to ponder the idea of a “best friend” and whether it were possible to have a best friend or not?

Faith & Reason

Pro-Life Revisited: the March for Life 2014

by Abigail R. Wilkinson, ‘17

Every year in late January, missionary priests and cloistered I like to spend some time reflectmonks. Those of us who were ing on the March for Life during unable to make it to the March the days following it. While many were able to experience the things are the same from year to incredible power of the vocation year, there is always something of the latter. Sitting alone in the new that I have learned. This year, chapel, praying, was not worthI looked forward to the March less. We are Catholics – we know with even greater anticipation than the power of prayer. We were able usual, knowing that my postPhoto credit to Christendom Photos to achieve as much or more with March reflections had the opporour prayers as we would have tunity to be more profound than they had ever been before. After been able to do in D.C. The quiet sacrifice is powerful in a way that all, going to Washington D.C. with 400+ vibrant Catholics in their television cameras could never capture. Furthermore, the March late teens and early twenties is an entirely different experience from for Life is not the one and only opportunity for pro-life activism, going with a group from a quiet suburban parish where only elderly though it is the most familiar and the most popular. But every people and parents of preschool children are interested in attending. Saturday morning at this school there is the opportunity to go kneel So I knew from the start that 2014 was going to be a different kind in the cold or heat, rain or shine to pray for an end to the tragedy of year. Life, however, is ever the administer of irony. Little did I of abortion. It may not be as attractive an option: it is on a smallerknow – little did any of us know – scale and nobody really notices or exactly how different it was going to There is more than one way to sacrifice for a cause. cares whether you go. There are be. no red-blooded chants of “I love

When Christendom was babies!” But it is a ministry that forced to cancel our buses to the March, this campus became a needs members. If we put just a quarter of our disappointment over ghost town. The normally bubbling Catholic air had faded to an our inability to participate in the March into Shield, then we would almost imperceptible simmer. I was disappointed – more than I really be proving our commitment to the pro-life movement. It is wanted to admit. But at least I am familiar with the experience of the “little way” to end abortion – but it is ever so powerful. the March, while some of my fellow classmates from Colorado and Don’t let the March for Life be the one and only pro-life activity of Washington and Tennessee had been dreaming of this day for years: your year. If it has been in the past, let 2014 change that. Rememthe day on which they would brave frigid temperatures, united with ber the power of prayer: if there is one thing to take away from this men and women from across the country, to stand for the most year’s March for Life experience, it is that prayer is just as powerfundamental human right. The night before the March, I let the ful as action. Don’t forget the horror of the reality of abortion: the disappointment affect me in a rather less than admirable fashion. I father in tears after his girlfriend aborts their child, the frightened moped. I sulked. I thought about how unfair it was that it had to young girl seeking help at the abortion clinic only to be shaken by snow on this day of all days. regret and pain for years, the bloody form of a murdered child lying

Then I woke up on Wednesday morning. The expected in a disposal bin, hundreds of children slaughtered every day with events of the day flashed through my mind: waking up to pull on no one to shed tears on their behalf. Merely saying that we are profive pairs of socks, teeth chattering while listening to Senators on the life is not enough. We are not pro-life in actuality if we do not act National Mall, marching and singing and praying for an end to one on our spoken convictions that life is precious and abortion grievof the worst abuses of human rights our world has ever seen. And ously wrong. Children are dying. Women are being broken. AborI realized something: it was so, so much more of a sacrifice to be tion is not merely a “procedure” carried out at the local Planned stuck on campus while the March went on without me. Yes, there Parenthood clinic but it is the gaping empty spaces in our lives of were temperatures below zero and snow and bone-chilling winds. which we are not even aware. It is broken families comprised of But despite the cold, the March carries a kind of glamour, with the missing children, grieving mothers, and mournful fathers. Rememthrill of camaraderie, and the panoramic view of protesters outside ber the words of Edmund Burke: “The only thing necessary for the the Supreme Court, and the chills down your spine when the crowd triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” spontaneously breaks into the Salve, and the waving at EWTN

What are we doing? “Pro-life” does not equal “The March cameras, and the feeling that you are saving the world, that you are for Life”. Remember the children whose deaths are not acknowldoing something. edged, remember the women who suffer in silence. Remember what

But is that really what it means to be pro-life? That is what it means to be pro-life. Remember that there is not only one way I asked myself that ever-so-long January day. There is more than of living this conviction. And then get up (or kneel down!) and do one way to sacrifice for a cause. That is why the Church has both something about it.

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15 | Fifteen

Science & Technology

PRINT

YOUR DREAM HOUSE by

Sean Shanahan, ‘16

Houses take time to build. Even the cookie-cutter houses that fill developments and crowd each other like emperor penguins require 5-6 months to build. Custom homes generally require about 12 months to reach completion. Time costs aside, new houses are also fairly expensive. These costs are only increased when the house is built according to a non-standard layout, since construction crews have to work around non-standard room sizes and floor plans. All this could change with the application of 3-D printing to the home building industry. Houses, like 3-D printed items, are built in layers from the bottom up. Conventional home building techniques involve constructing the house’s frame one floor at a time, starting with the basement or ground floor. Professor Behrokh Khoshnevis of the University of Southern California is currently the main advocate of applying 3-D printing to the housing industry. His proposed setup works much like an inkjet-style 3-D printer, except that it prints in concrete rather than plastic. This machine prints walls and floors out of concrete, using any floor plan imaginable.

3-D house printing, or Contour Crafting, as Professor Khoshenevis calls it, lays house walls layer by layer. Normal 3-D printers lay down materials in layers as thin as a millimeter, and sometimes even less. The thinness of the layers allow for a smoother printed item. The Contour Crafting process uses concrete, which does not allow for the printing precision that thermoplastics allow.

Walls are set down in inch-thick layers; they are mostly hollow, made of two parallel lines of concrete and an s-curve of concrete running between the two lines. Think corrugated cardboard, but made out of concrete instead of cardboard. As the walls are laid, conduits are inserted for plumbing, electrical, heating and air conditioning, and any other similar house components.

Once the walls and floors are finished, then construction workers can come in and run wiring, install windows, and complete all the other finishing touches needed for the house.

This construction method sounds nifty, but it is currently untested. It will no doubt require some tweaks before it is ready to be put into general use. Anything that uses concrete will have to

be periodically cleaned; otherwise the Contour Crafting machine will become a large and expensive paperweight with concrete-filled pipes. Another issue that this concept faces is the material it uses.

Concrete takes time to set, and while it is setting it cannot support itself, which is why concrete has to be poured into molds. Khoshnevis attempted to solve this problem by contracting a German laboratory to develop a concrete formula that would set almost as soon as it left the nozzle. This solution poses a challenge of its own.

How do you keep the concrete from setting in the machine when it is repositioning, or when it needs to stop laying concrete for a short time? Concrete is very strong when it is squashed, but not when it is stretched. This is why concrete floors have to be reinforced with steel rods, because steel is very strong when it is stretched. 3-D printing rebar into one of these houses would pose some interesting engineering challenges of its own. While the Contour Crafting concept faces initial building challenges, it is not immune to long-term concerns.

Maintaining any structure made out of one solid piece of concrete is difficult. The concrete will eventually crack and require patching. Utilities such as electrical wiring and plumbing pipes set into the walls will require replacement at some point, and replacing old plumbing is difficult enough without having to deal with concrete construction. Conventional construction has an advantage in this area because it is much easier to cut out a section of drywall to get at broken pipes or wires than it would be to get at those pipes and wires set into a concrete wall.

Contour Crafting is an emerging technology, and like any other emerging technology, it has some issues that must be resolved before it can be used on a major scale.

Whether it becomes a part of the industrial scene, as have many other 3-D printing processes, or falls by the wayside depends on how many of these issues its developers can address, and how much interest they can generate among wealthy investors.

In the meantime, it is a novel idea that is worth following.

Photo credit to Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum

16 | Sixteen

Poetry & Prose

by

Joe Brizek. ‘14

Echoes from the Valley Spires made of polished steel, reflecting beams from heaven, feel like ice, not melted from the rays, collecting shards for future days wind down the cobalt valley pulling vessels out to rally: ships or a heart adrift at seas of sand and stone who carefully labeled ghosts which spring from glass, contrives to journey through the pass away from heat, behind a bank, a lying man can't stand to thank the sun-kissed girl who rolls her sleeves, beneath the shade, he lies and grieves.

By Connor Coyne, ‘14

The Mug Brigade

If he takes another sip of coffee it will surely be the death of him. Come on, buddy, you can do it! Don’t die! Tommy had been watching Larry for about ten minutes now, ever since he had made his way over to the coffee from the garbage can.

Professor Samburg reached for the cup, and horror filled Tommy as he sat helplessly. But yes! Not all was lost! It was a false alarm; Samburg hadn’t moved the cup. Still, though, no sign of Larry emerging from the cup . . . Tommy started to sweat. He had known he shouldn’t have picked a desk next to the window. The sun was dumping buckets of heat on him. It was annoying, too, because he was right under the clock that seemingly was ticking its way to the death of Larry.

Wait! Was that him? Tommy leaned forward with a start.

He had seen a tiny, black speck pop up over the rim and it was fluttering about above the cup. “Come on buddy, get out of there,” he muttered under his breath.

“Mr. Burns, do you know Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s dates?”

Professor Samburg jerked Tommy out of his trance.

“Ahh, no!” stammered Tommy. The girl next to him giggled.

Gosh, she knows nothing, Tommy thought to himself. A life lies in the balance, and she has the indecency to laugh at me!

Oh no, Larry! Where has he gone? Professor Samburg was writing nonsense on the board; the cup still had not been moved, but no bobbing speck floated above it now. Has the daredevil gone back into the cup? If only I could get a better look, then maybe I could

Photo credit to Nikada

help . . .

“Excuse me, Mr. Samburg, may I close the blinds?” It was a brilliant plan, for Tommy was sure he could get a look now and get out of the heat. The sweat was building up on his undershirt.

“Yes, if you button that top button first.”

What a monster, Tommy thought as he forced his last ventilation shaft closed around his neck.

Then, as he stood up slowly, staring at the pond of coffee among the mountains of papers, he spotted his hero swimming across the lake of tar. He was stuck in the coffee, fighting to break free! If only I could tip the coffee over, he thought as he was struggling with the blind. He was struggling, and Larry was struggling, and something about that made him feel better.

“Jane, can you please read the poem on page one-ten?”

Professor Samburg asked. Jane was the smug girl that had laughed at him. Tommy could not stand her. She began to read, very proper and proud of herself…

Noooo! Professor Samdaddy is moving towards the coffee!

He slowly picked it up . . . Larry! Come on, Larry!

“Into the jaws of death, into the mouth of hell rode the six hundred,” Jane read as the professor took a large swallow of coffee.

Tears started to well up in Tommy’s eyes. As he looked up at the clock, he saw he still had forty minutes left of class.

“Tommy, are you alright?” Professor Samburg asked.

“Yes, sir, but it was so brave.”

17 | Seventeen

Poetry & Prose

By Madeleine Murphy. ‘14

The Glade

A colorful curtain, a wondrous tent; A secret cavern—to her it seemed sent.

A place where she felt safe, and never wished to leave; A place where she felt as sneaky as Dad on Christmas Eve. Here would she go to think, to create; No fear of discovery, of being late.

Embracing the green hues of her enclosure for months on end, Using them as backdrops for events, and days she would spend Dancing for duchesses, singing for kings, Performing with elephants in circus rings.

And so, great was her delight in finding, after visiting home, That some heavenly power exchanged green curtain for gold dome.

Gone was the green foliage she once knew, And new was the sight in the chill air that blew.

Yellows, oranges, and reds hung about her in a land of her own.

Had fall break really been so short to change all she had known?

Yet dreams do not last, but slowly fade away, And so fell the great curtain in a passing of days.

And her small, little haven—her secret place no more secret became As the reds to browns turned, and her world was no longer the same.

From Fangorn Forest, full of green life, To Alice’s Wonderland, colors all in strife.

Yet here was Eliot’s Wasteland, all bleak and naked and sad, No longer full of vigor, but all dead with boughs scantily clad.

Yet hope remains, for it will never fade, This place which has been dubbed ‘The Glade.’

©imgStocks.com 18 | Eighteen

The Last Word

Thumbs

The Last Word

Another opportunity for presenting our opinions on campus occurrences. Agree? Disagree? Have an opinion of your own? Let us know!

Even though the vans were canceled, Christendom was well-represented at the March for Life by devoted students!

by

Men’s basketball team is on fire! Keep up the good work gentlemen!

The IHOP in Front Royal is now open 24/7. Gone are the days where students will have to pull all-nighters at the Exxon station!

The Editorial Staff Right when we came back to campus this semester, a lot of brouhaha made the rounds through the Cdom grapevine about the F-Drive being shut down. Now, it’s pretty obvious that everyone will agree it was shut down for a good reason-plagiarism is an unacceptable disgrace to the student body on this campus. It’s kind of a no-brainer that students, their parents, and their teachers deserve a heck of a lot better than behavior like that.

But despite the very understandable reasons for the drive being shut down, there was a lot of complaining all round. (More along the lines of: “Nooooo!

The F-Drive is being shut down! Despair! There were so many good study guides on there that are now lost! Lost, I tell you! Forever!”).

Yet somehow, now almost a month into the first semester, we’ve survived without it. Nobody died or drowned in homework, the campus still is surviving on almost-no Wi-Fi, and the library didn’t slide into the Shenandoah.

The real crunch time, of course, will be when midterms come along. No one will be able to scavenge the study guides of famed brilliants of yesteryear and glean the fruits of their hard labor for ourselves. Will we survive?

Cup of Coeli was a big hit! As a result, Dark Chocolate and latte’s with extra foam are now high in demand.

The internet has not improved yet.

Here’s hoping it happens soon.

We’d darn well better. This is a college, and we’re grownups, not teens in high school any more. If you’ve come to Christendom, then it ought to be with the intention of applying yourself to authentic learning. Which usually entails having to work hard at your studies.

And let’s get real. The truth is, nobody’s old study guide can really save your hide during midterms week, can it? Only your efforts can get you a good grade.

No last minute review of Bersnak study questions that someone else compiled will be of any help for you. The only way you will learn anything at all is by your own serious studying.

And so be it. That’s what you’re here for.

So really, we haven’t lost all that much by the shutting down of the F-Drive, except the psychological crutch of feeling like the F-Drive will save us. And maybe, after all, that’s a good thing.

This cold weather brings a general lack of energy. Cold hands and chapped skin is ont fun...

Sincerely, The Editorial Staff.

19 | Nineteen