while getting advice from other students and alumni. But with stricter schedules, pep band was given less playing times and the Athletics Department increasingly dictated what they could and could not play, Mosmon said.
“In fact, if the Athletics Department did not like what we were playing, they would play prerecorded music over us. Sometimes, they would not even mic us,” Mosmon said.
students in the pep band who confrmed the changes that the Athletics Department was pushing the former director, Turner, to make. Steven Lum, a junior three-semester pep band member, said the band directors are perpetually under a lot of stress since there is a lack of advertising. Compared to cheer and dance, pep band’s social media accounts have a much smaller reach. Moreover, it is not mandatory for students to go to basketball games and attendance is often small. This made getting together a group of students to play for spontaneous requests even harder, Lum said.
Tonight, the Saint Louis University pep band starts small. Micro crescendos dot their pieces, lifting the audience up and setting them back down in anticipation of something big. Then the real rise comes with the baritones setting a steady foundation, leading into the saxophones, trumpets and electric basses, each building the classic rock and pop tunes to a pinnacle moment. Silence reigns and the audience is left swaying at the top. The only sound comes from the thump of the basketball across the court. The ball rolls around the hoop, and just as it falls into the net, the horns and trumpets cut through the tension with their fnal note. The crowd roars as SLU wins the game.
The pep band at SLU is an everentertaining group, always providing upbeat energy to elicit cheers and inspire the crowd. However, there seems to be a cord of tension surrounding the pep band students recently. On Dec. 31, 2022, Austin Turner, the director of SLU’s pep band for the last eight years, resigned in
protest of “heavy strain” placed on the group.
In his resignation letter, Turner provided context about the relationship between the Athletics Department and pep band over the past several years. He spoke directly to the current students and alumni in pep band, apologizing for the burden placed on them. Turner could not be reached for further comment.
“Over the past several years the relationship between Athletics and the Band has been tenuous at best and communication has been poorer than usual this season,” he wrote in the letter.
Specifcally, Turner said there have been increased demands for the pep band to perform at pep rallies, parades, volleyball games and more with little time to prepare the students and alumni for the spontaneous events.
Amy Mosmon, a SLU alumni who has been playing with the pep band since 2008, said there had been no major issues until the last few years. Originally, she said pep band was a mental health reprieve for students to play their beloved instrument
Mosmon claims that in the event of a poor basketball game, the Athletics Department would seek someone to hold accountable, often directing the blame towards them, citing that they failed to make the game enjoyable enough. This accusation, as per Mosmon, was also leveled at Cheer and Dance, although their directors were unavailable for comment.
Mosmon said she has always “bled blue.” Unfortunately, the workload of pep band is just too much, she said.
“It takes a lot of sacrifce to be part of pep band now. Especially with work and family, and then to be asked to just stand there…it is not worth the effort and I do not trust how long current changes will last,” Mosmon said.
In an email chain to the Athletics Department following Turner’s resignation, other alumni expressed sentiments similar to Mosmon’s. One such alumnus listed several grievances against the Athletics Department such as budget cuts, short notices and lack of respect, before saying they could no longer volunteer with a department that “willfully disregards the mental well-being of students.”
The University News spoke with
“The pep band director got a lot of last minute requests within 48 hours. This was just not possible as students have exams. The requests were too short notice,” Lum said.
Another alumnus, who did not wish to speak with The University News, wrote in the email thread that they quit volunteering with the pep band and questioned the Athletics Department’s judgements and lack of effort in fostering a secure and constructive environment for the students of pep band.
Janet Oberle, Deputy Director of SLU Athletics, said there are mental health resources given to pep band students through Athletics.
“There is someone from the University Counseling Center who physically has hours in Chaifetz twice a week. This is UCC’s way of helping athletes specifcally,” Oberle said.
Oberle declined to comment on the other concerns or resignations.
The Athletic Department’s unresponsive behavior and attitude may have contributed to the strain that resulted in a wave of resignations. However, it might also be a symptom of an underlying issue – a lack of funding, faculty and overall interest in Saint Louis University’s music department.
Margaret Cotner, a junior who has been playing with the pep band since
her freshman year, spoke about her experience coming from a high school where over a third of the graduating class was involved in some kind of music group to a college where there is only one band with less than 40 people.
“My high school had a lot of funding and support for music. Everyone knew everyone in music. In fact, if you were not part of a musical group, it was like what are you doing? How are you enriching yourself if not with music and arts?” Cotner states.
Today, the pep band has approximately 40 members made up of alumni and students, with some sections having no instruments.
“There is one trumpet, one french horn…something is missing here. These are fairly common instruments and we are begging students who play them to join,” Cotner said.
There is something amiss about the music department’s low audition turnout for certain instruments typically played in pep bands. The heart of the issue comes down to the fact that there is no incentive for students to join the pep band, and since most students in the band are pre-med or pre-health, they are not likely to adjust their schedules without one.
In December 2022, SLU revoked the MUSC-3470 Pep Band course. In other words, the pep band exists outside of Athletics, but students cannot enroll in the course for the Fine Art credit requirement. Seemingly, the only incentive students now have to join pep band is their own love for music, Cotner said. Yet, for the majority of the student body who are at SLU to enrich their professional background, they will devote their time to clubs and classes that fll that role.
Revoking course credit is not the frst time incentives to the band have been stripped. There used to be a $250 dollar scholarship that Athletics gave each pep band student.
“I mean it’s not even that much but Athletics has been very stubborn to reinstate it,” Cotner states.
$250 is little compared to other college’s pep and marching bands. In 2019, through private funding, every member of the Ohio State marching band received at least a $3,000 scholarship. The scant funding Athletics has given to the band combined with a zero-credit class speaks to SLU’s underappreciation of music and arts enrichment, Cotner said.
“It makes me want to pull my hair out that there is no advertising, no push, no
scholarship to get students to join pep band. All these schools have advertising because it is healthy for students to do music. But SLU is giving money to other departments and letting the music department slip away,” Cotner states.
It appears that the decline of the pep band is indicative of SLU’s apathy toward their music and arts programs.
The pep band is supposed to provide a sense of community and inclusivity, Mosmon said. Previously, it served as a safe haven for students who may have previously felt like outsiders and allowed them to embrace their love for music. In other words, it lets students be “fun nerds.” However, with fewer members it becomes diffcult to maintain this environment and meet these expectations, Mosmon said.
According to Cotner, under the new interim pep band director, Sarah Silverberg, pep band students have been given a new sense of hope after a tumultuous winter. She said Silverberg has spent the beginning of the spring semester attempting to make connections between Athletics and students so they can be better supported.
Additionally, Cotner said, Silverberg has been able to initiate talks with Athletics to address if the band can update equipment, merchandise and music.
Mosmon stated that Sarah is a lively and enthusiastic person. However, Mosmon expresses concerns that the Athletics Department may cause her some stress.
“I hope that the Athletics Department does not burn her out,” Mosmon said.
The University News reached out to Silverberg but she did not wish to comment.
It is clear, however, that new jackets, set music and easier accessibility to counselors will not solve the pep bands problems that are indicative of a larger issue at hand. According to Cotner, SLU’s music program is crumbling and the only way to address the concern is to incentivize students to not only join pep band, but also enroll in other music classes. Musical enrichment is key to alleviating students’ mental health stress and emphasis desperately needs to be placed on it, said Cotner.
Perhaps by doing so, the pep band can once again become a sanctuary for students.
Marquis Govan is not new to politics. Born and raised in St. Louis, he became involved in activism in his early teens after witnessing inequity and unfair policing practices in his community. As the 202324 Student Government Association President-elect, he hopes to bring his experiences and passions to the Saint Louis University campus.
A sophomore social work and sociology student, Govan is SGA’s current VP of Diversity and Inclusion.
SGA strives to create a space for students to participate in representative student government by providing an open forum to student opinions concerning the affairs of the University. Presidential elections for SGA were held on March 1 and 2 between Junior Brooke Kenworthy and Sophomore Marquis Govan.
“At SLU, you feel either really connected or really disconnected. I felt very disconnected when I frst started at SLU. What helped combat this was people making an effort to include me and grant me the experience that I deserved. With my new position as SGA President, I hope to do the same,” Govan said.
The SGA President is responsible for overseeing student activity events and planning, policy support from faculty and students, allocation of funding and resources, serving as a bridge for communication between University staff and the student body, and most importantly, responding to issues that are posed to members of the SLU community.
The main driving factor for running for this position, Govan said, was his vision of organizing students on the fundamentals of accessibility and inclusion.
“Seeing people not have any resources, including myself at times, made me realize how many students don’t understand people like myself exist. I want to give a voice to those who are marginalized and ignored,” Govan said. Throughout his campaign, Govan prioritized a concept he referred to as “radical love, community and inclusion.”
“What does radical love even mean? Radical love to me means that people’s spirits are being comforted. It means that people with dietary restrictions have suffcient food to eat on campus. It means transgender and non-binary students feel comfortable being their true selves on campus. It means students with disabilities are able to navigate around campus. It means Black and Brown students feel safe,” he said. “When you talk about living in a radical community, it needs to be built on these fundamentals of love. Students must feel as if they are being invested in, not just surviving. Not everyone is in a ‘Roll Bills’ mentality here, because of the inequities they experience daily.”
To help students feel more at home at SLU, Govan said he believes a culture shift is beyond necessary, as it will create a more inclusive environment.
“A lot of people from marginalized communities come here and feel like they don’t ft in. Breaking barriers is key here,” Govan said. “I do believe a good place to start is by providing students with livable dorms, though. Especially for students with disabilities, dietary restrictions or those who are trans.”
The importance for breaking barriers,
he noted, is that it requires the holistic embracement of people as individuals. What is stopping SLU from achieving this, he said, is a missing piece of compassion and understanding from students and faculty.
“We have lots of potential to build a culture that is inclusive and accepting. We already have resources, but sometimes people don’t feel like they are real. At times, they appear almost forced and performative. In order to shift this, there needs to be more sincerity, but I cannot be the only one implementing it. This needs to be a collective shift,” Govan said.
Govan emphasized that everything is interconnected and different issues that people may exhibit have more overlap than one would expect.
“Everything is multifaceted, which is why I approach things the way that I do. When I am talking about one issue, I am talking about multiple. This is why I will prioritize partnerships with RAs, RHA, Rainbow Alliance and Disability Services.”
He said he intends to encourage conversations about these topics by organizing his SGA presidency outside of the conventional view.
“By making the dialogue about both me and you, we are both taking responsibility. My primary goal is to discuss those who aren’t physically present at the [presidential] meetings, and while I am outside of these meetings, I intend to include people in the dialogue who weren’t a part of them,” Govan said.
As he steps into his new role, he said his most important message for our community was his promise to listen.
“Seeing people not have any resources, including myself at times, made me realize how many students don’t understand people like myself exist. I want to give a voice to those who are marginalized and ignored.”
“I exist to serve the SLU population. I am accessible. If anyone has a problem, please reach out to me.”
For over 25 years at various institutions, Rochelle D. Smith strived to utilize diversity, equity and inclusion work to help the most marginalized achieve the dream versions of themselves. Now as Saint Louis University’s second Vice President of the Division of Diversity and Innovative Community Engagement (DICE), she aims to do the same .
“Students are at the very core of why I come to work every day, of why I do the work I do…So everything that I do is tethered really to the belonging and the advancement of students who entrust us as an institution with their young lives [and] their young minds,” Smith said.
During her time in college, opportunities were not as accessible to her as they are today. Popularly given to Black women during their youth, she was given choices to be a teacher or a nurse.
“I really [didn’t] want to be a nurse. I went to what was supposed to be an academic advising office, or the precursor to that because we really didn’t have anything like that, and nobody was there,” Smith said.
Despite feeling upset, she realized her passion and calling was to ensure that other students don’t get the same shut door on their faces.
“If ever I have a chance to help a student or anybody really feel more confident or figure out their vocation or their career, especially in medicine I’m going to do it somehow, some way
in my life, I’m going to do that,” she decided that day.
Her pivotal professional milestone was when she witnessed data discrepancies during her initial years working as an administrator at the Student Educational Services at Washington University in St. Louis. The department worked to help students from low-income, firstgeneration backgrounds pursue their desired careers.
As Smith observed data on students pursuing fields in STEM, she discovered that a majority of those students were struggling to pass the gatekeeping courses of chemistry, biology, physics and calculus. It did not sit right with her to know this information and do nothing, primarily because she saw herself in the shoes of these students. Upon getting in contact with those who were addressing the issue,committees and grants started to take place as proactive measures striving to turn the statistics around.Fast forward three years, the percentage of incoming freshmen wanting to go into medicine went from four to 40 percent, as per Smith. As a diversity practitioner, she was passionate about changing the landscape of STEM from being “woefully underrepresented”, to getting the underrepresented students to the front of the classroom.
With experience working with marginalized students trying to make it in the STEM fields, Smith saw a pattern in their applications. She advised students applying for college, graduate or professional programs
to not “just talk about what the school can do for you, but talk about what you’ll bring to the school.” She adds that a lot of students don’t do that because they think, “oh, the school wants to hear about how great the school is,” when in reality, schools want to know how great applicants are.
“We want students to feel celebrated and feel as if somebody cared enough to know them by name and by story,” she says, quoting her mentor at WashU, Dr. Jim Macleod. “We want to know students by name and by story, and that’s ultimately at the end of the day at the core of what we do.”
At SLU, Smith is passionate about addressing the needs of students from underrepresented backgrounds in the United States and overseas. When asked about the DICE’s diversity plan of ensuring students from different racial, ethnic, religious and national backgrounds feel included on SLU’s campus, Smith commented that her unit defines diversity broadly and acknowledges that everybody has a story. DICE wants to base its work on the different cultures and backgrounds that “adds to the fabric of our institution.”
DICE is working on a project called Home Plate with Dr. Frances Pestello as its ambassador. The program aims at inviting students from all historically excluded backgrounds, of which include low-income, firstgeneration, Black students, brown students, international students, and share a meal with faculty and
staff in their homes so that there is an exchange of “culture, mores, stories and backgrounds [to] sort of cross-pollinate.” The program will be launched Fall of 2023, representing SLU and DICE’s addressing of the marginalization of existence in a pretty large campus.
Smith’s nomination to the job, she said, was a moment of honor for her. Her late husband, Jonathan C. Smith, was SLU’s first vice president for this position. She succeeds professor Amber Johnson of the Department of Communication, who served as the interim Vice President of DICE since August 2021.
“I was just happy to be considered for the role,” reveals Smith. She adds that President Pestello and Provost Lewis were gracious and offered her all the resources she needed as part of the onboarding process.
She has years of personal and professional experience in making it into influential spaces and jobs with her Master’s degree even when at times she said she felt intimidated by those who held advanced degrees. She wants young women of color to have courage, dream and act on it. She asks them to “do it and don’t care… because the thing that you’re a master of is being you… and as you grow in your career, become a student of your approach to things…”
In 2021, female authors made up 75% of the general and literary fiction titles. Women today continue to consistently occupy more space within the literary world. However, not long ago, women writers would often publish their books under false names, typically male pseudonyms to guarantee that their works would sell.
During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, women frequently wrote under male pseudonyms for a variety of reasons, including the desire to publish their works without prejudice from male audiences, to experiment creatively and to encourage male readership. However, the main reason why female writers chose to publish under false names was to ensure that their work would be honestly and objectively considered for its craft and quality, and not judged through the lens of feminine emotion. Many of these writers would later publish their works under their real names, but only once the book had been successful already.
In honor of Women’s History Month, here is a list of some of the many renowned female writers who have published their works of literature under male pen names.
The Brontë Sisters
In 1846, Charlotte, Emily and Anne Brontë published a collection of poems under the names of Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell. The surname Bell came from the curate of Haworth, England, where the Brontë sisters resided. Ironically, Charlotte Brontë would later go on to marry the namesake, Arthur Bell Nicholls. They decided against using their real names to ensure that their work would be considered seriously and gain objective praise for the work.
In 1847, each sister published their first novels under the pen names: “Jane Eyre” by Currer Bell who was Charlotte, “Wuthering Heights” by
Ellis Bell who was Emily, and “Agnes Grey” by Acton Bell who was Anne.
After Emily and Anne Brontë’s death in 1848, Charlotte Brontë wrote a forward for the second edition of “Wuthering Heights,” and explained their reasons for using pseudonyms.
“We did not like to declare ourselves women, because—without at that time suspecting that our mode of writing and thinking was not what is called ‘feminine’—we had a vague impression that authoresses are liable to be looked on with prejudice.”
The women did not want their voices to be perceived as feminine, instead, they wanted to be recognized simply for their talent with the pen.
Charlotte would reveal her identity following “Jane Eyre’s” success, but Emily and Anne would pass before they could reveal their identities. Therefore, in 1847, Charlotte published “Brontë’s Life and Works,” a set of all the sister’s collected works, and in the foreword, Charlotte would introduce the three of them as the Brontë sisters.
Although it may seem surprising, since Louisa May Alcott’s most notable work, “Little Women” was originally published under her real name, Alcott used an androgynous pseudonym for her earlier works.
Alcott’s pen name was discovered in the 1940s by historian Leona Rostenberg and bookseller Madeleine B. Stern, who found a correspondence
of letters between Alcott and a group of small publishers written between 1865 and 1866. Alcott referenced herself as A.M. Barnard, the author of various bestselling gothic works at the time. Rostenberg and her fellow scholars would bring this information to the public in the 1970s, and Alcott’s lesser known works, such as “A Long Fatal Love Chase” and “Behind the Mask,” were re-published. Alcott chose to write these works as A.M. Barnard due to the passionate and dark themes of sensation novels, which were considered highly unladylike at the time. Alcott decided to avoid public scrutiny for writing such works by using a pen name.
It is likely Alcott chose to publish “Little Women” under her real name because of its more traditional themes of sisterhood and romance, more commonly female literary devices. However, even “Little Women” attempted to break traditional boundaries of literature. Alcott originally intended for her heroine Jo March to be an unmarried spinster, but she was discouraged by her publishers, who told her the novel would not sell if Jo ended the novel unmarried. This was seen as highly untraditional and scandalous. Ultimately, Alcott would conform and ensure Jo was married by the novel’s conclusion.
Karen Blixen
Karen Blixen is a Danish writer best known for her memoir “Out of Africa,” written in 1937, which recounts
Blixen’s time living in Kenya. However, before she wrote “Out of Africa,” Blixen was successful as a short story writer. Her first work, “Seven Gothic Tales,” was published under very specific circumstances. Blixen had unsuccessfully attempted to sell the stories to publishers in Britain, but she found success in America with the help of novelist Dorothy Canfield Fisher.
Blixen’s short stories would be published under the following conditions: Fisher would write an introduction to endorse the novel, and Blixen would not receive an advance for the book. Blixen, herself, decided to add one more condition. She would write under the pen name Isak Dinesen. Dinsen was Blixen’s maiden name, and Isak is the Danish version of Isaac, which means laughter. Blixen decided to use a pen name to not just appear male, but to appear genderless. Blixen also came from a wealthy background and desired to be judged genuinely for the quality of her work, not her affluent background.
“Seven Gothic Tales” was an American success, and was chosen as the national Book of the Month in 1934.
Women writers have come a long way since feeling pressured to use male pseudonyms to ensure the success of their works. However, it is important to remember the female writers who felt they had to hide behind a masculine name in order to be taken seriously within the literary world. This list is not extensive, and there are countless other women who wrote under pen names, and some women still use male pen names today. Many of these works are considered literary classics, and it is worthwhile to consider whether or not these books would be so well known had the women chosen to originally publish them under their real names.
On Sunday, March 19, MOCRA, Saint Louis University’s Museum of Contemporary Religious Art, unveiled its spring exhibit entitled “Cuentos Nuevomexicanos,” the Stories of New Mexico. The two artists behind this exhibition are Vicente Telles and Brandon Maldonado, both of whom were raised in New Mexico. The display consists of 23 works that range from self-portraits using oil on canvas to religious symbols carved in basswood.
To be exact, the religious symbols depicted are “Santos,” or “saints.” The celebration and use of Santos is a vast tradition that has lasted for over 200 years in Hispanic cultures, specifically originating in Spain. Santos are often used in paintings as imagery for religious devotion, often helping people in prayer to the specific saints depicted. Of course, this tradition continued through Catholicism and colonialism to territories under Spanish rule. Since then, New Mexican “Santeros” (makers of Santos) took the tradition, making it something of its own when mixed with new cultural ideas.
Vicente Telles is a Santero and a proponent of the Santos tradition. He harkens back to the traditional Santos in many ways, including his use of tablets, self-made pigments, and interpretations of well-known Catholic images. He uses this iconography in his more contemporary works, where his art includes social commentaries with a primary focus on Mexican culture, including the Mexico-US border crisis. As an artist, Telles takes it upon himself to work as a communicator and teacher of the Santos tradition in our modern world.
One of Telles’ works that best represents the line that he rides between the Santos tradition and his own style is titled “Mother Son.” This piece is a wooden structure carved from basswood, painted with foraged and commercial watercolor pigments. On the left side, there is a depiction of Saint Mary holding an infant Jesus. On the right, a depiction of the risen Christ collecting blood in a chalice, possibly for communion.
“The piece alludes to the duality of life and death, of feeding and being fed,” Telles said.
Brandon Maldonado’s work in the exhibit mainly uses a contemporary eye. The multicultural environment of New Mexico left a permanent imprint on Brandon Maldonado’s work, which frequently explores themes associated with Mexican culture. These two elements combined lead to a more modern way of storytelling through his artwork. Upon being asked his goal for curating his works for “Cuentos Nuevomexicanos,” Maldonado says that he wanted to share and express this culture.
“St. Louis is quite a distance away from New Mexico,” Maldonado said. “I wanted to put together a body of work that would share the story of this 200-year-old uniquely New Mexican Saintmaker art form both visually and thematically through sharing the unique cultural aspects of the New Mexican land.”
When Maldonado was asked which work is his favorite, he said there was importance within both works, though one did gain a stronger reaction.
“I don’t pick favorites,… the image I have depicting the Sangre de Cristo (Blood of Christ) mountain range has gotten a strong personal reaction from many people who grew up in the region,” Maldonado said.
The art piece was created using oil and acrylic on a panel. It depicts a surrealist image of the fallen Christ morphed into a mountain range. It was inspired by the southern stretch of the Rocky Mountains named Sangre de Cristo by the people of Northern New Mexico.
“Seeing a literal and surreal image of the mountain range of their homeland seemed to strike a chord with them. So I’m particularly proud of that one,” Maldonado said.
The exhibition will be on display until May 21, 2023. If a free moment is found amid final exams and late-night study sessions, hopefully inspiration is found to visit “Cuentos Nuevomexicanos.” Not only is the exhibit an excellent showcase of artistic ability, it is also an opportunity to learn about New Mexico and its culture.
A celebration of spring, Art in Bloom is an annual festival at SLAM, Saint Louis Art Museum. Each year, dozens of pieces at the museum are selected to be interpreted through foral design. Artists took various approaches, with some producing more literal visual replicas of the works and others taking a more imaginative approach. A couple of pieces stood out this year.
Rebecca Bodicky, a STL-based foral artist, created a foral imitation of Kerry James Marshall’s painting “Watts 1963.” Bodicky opted to highlight the physical features of the painting, rather than the thematic elements.
Marshall’s work explores narratives of Black history through exceptionally detailed paintings. His Black fgures are arguably one of the most recognizable attributes in his work. In fact, the only time that Marshall uses true black paint in his work is when he is painting Black fgures- all other black pigments used in his paintings are blended with other colors. The 1995 painting “Watts 1963,” depicts children playing in Nickerson Gardens in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. The area is marked by a large sign reading “Housing Authority City of Los Angeles Nickerson Gardens,” with a partially hidden red banner above and another thin white banner held by bluebirds. The black paint’s thematic importance was in some ways lost in the foral interpretation, as the sign featured in the center of the painting was the only black element in the design.
However, this may be an exemplifcation of the foral artist’s emphasis on this particular element. Bodicky used several artifcial elements, creating the banners with ribbon and the sign with paper stock. Larkspur, a bluish violet fower, surrounded the white ribbon banner, presumably a representation of the bluebirds in the painting. Though tiny in the painting, the white banner holds great signifcance. It reads “Here We Rest,” Alabama’s frst state motto, a contrast to the otherwise LA themed piece. This banner could have been another motif to explore in the foral piece, as it is essential to understanding Marshall’s artistic choices because of his upbringing in Alabama and subsequent experience in LA.
Bodicky cites the children as a main source of inspiration for the piece. In her writing that accompanied the foral design, Bodicky questions whether the children are playing happily or not. “Their expressions land you in a state of confusion,” Bodicky said.
This inspiration was perhaps lost in translation, as there is no obvious foral element pointing to the children or a sense of confusion. Their lack of expression in the painting, though, may be translated into the lack of these fgures in the foral piece.
From an instrumentalist perspective, Marshall’s work is highly “successful,” while Bodicky’s merit may be highest from a formalist perspective. At a glance, Bodicky’s representation of “Watts 1963” provides a near perfect visual replication but lacks the emotional signifcance that Marshall’s work so frequently emphasizes.
Van Goyen’s “On the Ice Near Dordrecht” features a low horizon line, with the majority of the canvas depicting a mild sky with fuffy clouds. Below, a slim portion of the canvas shows characters skating on ice. The painting is said to highlight the fatness of the Dutch countryside, though foral artist Lindsey Rawlings interpreted a much different perspective, focussing on the whimsical and soft clouds above.
Though still expressive, van Goyen relies on a fairly limited color palette to build light and shadows in the clouds. Rawlings followed suit, using a similar cool palette built by the pastel shades in hydrangeas, baby’s breath, white gomphrena, and cotton. “On the Ice Near Dordrecht” is frequently revered as a piece honoring the Dutch heritage, as Van Goyen himself is Dutch. Using her knowledge of foral design, Rawlings mirrored the ode-like sentiments of van Goyen’s piece by using fowers native to the Dutch. These included ranunculus, buttercups, tulips, and heather-each of which exemplifed the different characters ice skating.
Rawlings’ piece focuses on the qualities of different fora to embody the emotive elements of van Goyen’s work.
“I have chosen to transform my arrangement with mounds of hydrangeas, baby’s breath, white gomphrena, and cotton to emulate the vast skyline,” Rawlings said in her inspiration statement. Her choice of fowers was deliberate and exemplary; soft and light fowers, in both texture and color, represented clouds, while native fowers exemplifed the Dutch people.
Whether literal or expressive, the foral artists created an impressive show to ring in spring. Art in Bloom is a free annual three-day festival with special ticketed programs. Though the foral pieces are no longer available for viewing, information about the designs and artists is available online at https://www.slam.org/event/ art-in-bloom-2023/. The original works replicated are all a part of the museum’s permanent collection.
Floral Interpretation by Rebecca Bodicky
Photo courtesy of STL Art Museum
(MC Pavlick / The University News)
Photo courtesy of STL Art Museum
(MC Pavlick / The University News)
There’s a tunnel under Ocean Boulevard. It was built in Long Beach, California, in 1927 to provide a safe passage to the beach for pedestrians and was closed to the public in 1967. As Lana Del Rey compares herself to this tunnel on the title track of her ninth album, she asks, with a melancholic certainty, when her “handmade beauty” will be “sealed up by two man-made walls.” “When’s it gonna be my turn?” she sings, asking not if, but when. Still, in the same way her poetry often comes across as an omen, someone who sees what you’ll learn from a heartbreak before the heartbreak comes, she already knows the answer.
On her ninth album, she has accepted that her beauty is soon to be like the mosaic ceilings and hand painted tiles in the titular tunnel. No longer the siren she was at 20, she is closed off to those who don’t wish to walk through her to get to the beauty on the other side. With her youth and relevancy under attack, her response is the opposite of a battle cry. Instead, she greets this form of death without a plea to survive, but a chuckle, a laugh in the face of critics who expect her to keep holding onto her cultural grasp and vibrance. On “A&W,” she asks “do you really think I give a damn what I do after years of just hearing them talking?” This time, everyone knows the answer.
As if she has the tunnel to herself, her lyrics roll off her tongue like the most personal journal entries, taking on a Mark Kozelek-esc approach to her ruminations that often favors scattered details over her traditional poetic one-liners. She places ramblings over fluffy beds of piano and strings, and sometimes trap beats, on “A&W,” “Peppers,” “Fishtail”, and “Taco Truck & VB,” and allows the audience to connect the emotive dots between narrative details.
The full 77 minutes features less instrumental variation than lyrical prowess, which she has a lot of. There are points where the instrumentation, washed out in reverb, sounds itself like it was recorded in a tunnel. The atmosphere rarely fades, but slowly grows stale, and the listener is asked to dig through the surface monotony to take Lana’s messages to heart. Although there is much to be said, by the time “Let The Light In” starts, the simple sounds of an acoustic guitar and Father John Misty’s voice is a much needed break of habit.
Still, it is the clearest mirror Lana has held in front of her, whether it takes the form of the stream-of-consciousness “Fingertips,” or the self-destructive, multi-phased “A&W.” Here, nothing is off the table. “Taco Truck & VB,” which closes the record on a sample of “Norman Fucking Rockwell” standout “Venice Bitch,” opens with a request for someone to pass her vape. “Margaret,” a collaboration with Jack
Antonof’s, who produced much of the record, Bleachers, ends with an invitation to a party on December 18th. “If you want some basic bitch, go to the Beverly Center and find her,” she sings on “Sweet.” Her calm cracks on “Candy Necklace,” singing eerily about her recklessness with a man she is infatuated with. The six and a half minute “Kintsugi,” which has one of the most stunning refrains on the project, is the most verbose Lana song ever, and it’s strikingly revealing..
Though the ramblings yield many highs, the best song is at the beginning. “The Grants,” named after her family, contains one of her strongest melodies ever, and the sentimental refrain and familial references make it her first undeniable tear-jerker. She uses it to remind listeners that all the heartbreak and happiness thread throughout the 77 minute record are part of the same “beautiful life.”
And that’s the essential message of the album: all of the stunning and all the forgettable, all the tasteful and tacky, all the irreverent and all the dead-serious, is part of the same Lana. She is letting loose for herself and the fans who won’t forget her when her beauty fades. Every moment of self-indulgence adds to the reflection this record creates, making the collection of songs feel like a character portrait. As she observes on “Kintsugi,” the charm is often in its cracks, which are quickly recognized but easily forgiven.
(Photo Courtesy of Spotify)5
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By PAIGE FANN
Editor
On Sunday March 26th, Saint Louis University hosted a concert of completely improvised music by some of St. Louis’ most well-known experimental musicians. The concert hosted two Trios. Trio One consisted of Greg Mills, Fred Tompkins, and Glen “Papa” Wright Jr. Mills is trained in classic piano performance and studied at The St. Louis Institute of Music. Tompkins is a jazz musician and composer, who performed on flute. Wright Jr. is formally a teacher at the St. Louis Conservatory and Schools for the Arts and performed on percussion.
W O M E N I N S P O R T S
W O M E N I N S P O R T S
St. Louis City Soccer Club (City SC) shut out the San Jose Earthquakes 3-0 at their new home pitch, CITYPARK, on Mar. 18, 2023, becoming the first expansion team in MLS history to win each of their first four matches.
City SC won their opening three games entering Saturday, joining the Seattle Sounders as the only expansion team to ever achieve this feat, with all three wins serving as come-from-behind victories. Despite their tenacious playstyle and evident comradery, the team’s early success came as a shock to many fans and the rest of the league.
“The boys were confident from day one. The boys were angry from day one that no one believed in them,” Head Coach Bradley Carnell said in a postgame press-conference following their game against San Jose. “It’s not just about having a chip on the shoulder: We can compete, we can comeback, we can dominate, we can take control and we can execute.”
As game time neared closer on Saturday night, fans packed into CITYPARK despite the freezing conditions. In the 34th minute of the game, Niko Gioacchini found the back of the net for Saint Louis’ first goal. João Klauss scored the second goal of the evening during first half stoppage time. Tomáš Ostrák slammed the door on San Jose with CITY’s third and final goal in the 68th minute of the match. Roman Bürki, the 32-year-old Swiss goalkeeper, recorded his first clean sheet of the season, making two saves in the process. “Roman [Bürki] was itching for the clean sheet,” Coach Carnell said in the press conference after the game. “He really wanted this one badly. We gave him the ball in the locker room–congratulating him.”
Similar to the inaugural home-opener, the environment at CITYPARK against the Earthquakes seemed to be an immense advantage for City SC. “The atmosphere was the loudest stadium I’ve ever been at,” SLU freshman Jared Thornberry said. Thornberry, who has attended both home games
with season tickets, said, “Instead of cheering after home runs, touchdowns, or [hockey] goals, the stadium was singing and chanting the whole 90 minutes and it was unreal.” Fans, players and coaches have already compared the 22,500-seat stadium to electric venues and atmospheres in European Leagues.
The economic impact of St. Louis City SC, particularly on local restaurants and businesses, cannot be understated. Syberg’s Market, located right next to CITYPARK, holds weekly watch parties for City SC’s matches.
“Business has been great so far–we’ve been really busy,” said Alon Salomon, manager of Syberg’s on Market Street. “Fans are coming out here by the dozens and it’s been very consistent for every game. We’ve been preparing for this for a while, to be honest.” Syberg’s is one of countless restaurants that holds weekly watch parties, with St. Louis City SC typically posting on their social media accounts where the nearest watch party is. Passionate about its local roots and impact, St. Louis City SC has done a great job at reinforcing the importance of the “Gateway City” throughout their time as an MLS soccer club. For instance, Miguel Perez, a 17-year-old senior at Pattonville High School, became the first “homegrown” player in franchise history this season. Perez has played in all four games this season for City SC and was recently named to the United States Under-19 Men’s Youth National Team.
Additionally, the team plays with a ferocious style, not too dissimilar to the work-ethic that the greater St. Louis region is known for. “We want to embrace the mindset of the St. Louisan,” Coach Carnell said. “We want to embrace the culture of the community.”
CITYPARK and its staff have done an excellent job with broadcasting and presenting the games to City SC fans. Carson Pruitt, a freshman at SLU, is one of two Character Generators at CITYPARK. He operates software that creates real time computer
graphics, which are displayed on the video boards throughout the game.
“There is so much more that goes into a sports production that no one realizes,” Pruitt said. “The whole day of the home opener I was stressed, not knowing if my graphics were going to work as intended,” Pruit stated. “We were able to improve greatly [for] the second home match. It was so gratifying to finally have fans in the stadium to appreciate our work and enjoy a match.”
In spite of previous failed attempts to bring a professional soccer team to “the Lou,” it seems safe to assume that this club has found a welcoming home. While many fans and analysts have doubted this team coming into the season, it seems as if there are no obstacles that this team cannot overcome.
City SC’s next game is Apr. 1 against Minnesota United FC at CITYPARK and can be streamed on Apple TV.
Saint Louis University Women’s Basketball closed out their 202223 season after a year of transforming their challenges into success. Following a rough start to the season, the Billikens were able to flip the narrative by earning the Atlantic 10 (A10) Championship title.
The Billikens started out their season with a 3-12 record. With the help of new leadership from head coach Rebecca Tillett, the Billikens held hope, eventually allowing them to grow from their unfortunate outcomes.
Tillett mentioned in an interview with KMOV Saint Louis that when the outcomes were not favorable, she continued to push the team: “Let’s keep getting better,” said Tillett “We have a lot to learn.” Although the Billikens had a mediocre start, they turned things around and won the last 11 of their 12 competitions. On the strength of the team, Tillett said, “Not everybody can be in that outcome driven environment and continue to rise up when things are difficult, and this group did that over and over again.”
When entering the A10 tournament, the ladies aimed towards accomplishing one of the biggest feats in college basketball: securing a bid to the NCAA March Madness Tournament. The team played a strong game against Rhode Island in the semi-finals and ended with a final score of 59-56 to advance to the finals versus the University of Massachusetts Minutewomen. This challenge inspired the Billikens, and did not blur the women’s sights of bringing home their first A10 title.
Senior Kyla McMakin entered the game averaging about 17.4 points
per game for the season and ended the game scoring a total of 27 points for her team. Guard Julia Martinez clinched the second triple-double in SLU women’s basketball history with 17 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists. Martinez was also named “Most Outstanding Player” in the A10 Tournament. After being named Atlantic 10 champions, the Billikens officially had a bid to the NCAA March Madness Tournament, the first ever in SLU Women’s Basketball history.
With the win secured, the team traveled to Knoxville, Tennessee to compete in the first round of March Madness in Thompson-Boling Arena, home of the Tennessee Volunteers. Saint Louis, a 13th seeded team, was scheduled to play Tennessee, a fourth seeded team. On Mar. 18, 2023t, the Billikens wrote their names in the SLU history books as the first team to make it to the tournament when they took the court that afternoon. Although the outcome of the game was not as they hoped, the team played a collaborative game for the last of the season. Top scorers included senior Brooke Flowers with 17 points, graduate student Camree Clegg with 12 points and senior McMakin with 11 points.
The results of this season show promise for the Billikens in upcoming seasons. In reflecting about their monumental, successful season, Martinez said, “Thinking about everything we’ve been through, all the obstacles, the fact that we were actually able to do it together as one whole team is such an accomplishment.”
Despite the challenges faced on the way, the Billiken’s inspiring and historic season is unforgettable.
After the 2021-22 season, the Saint Louis University Women’s Basketball program was eager for a change in leadership. Chris May, the Director of Athletics at SLU, set out looking for someone who could coach the team to consecutive winning seasons, and lead the Billikens to conference and national championships.
Rebecca Tillett was hired as Head Coach of the Women’s Basketball team in April 2022. Tillett has proven through her past coaching experiences and the recent results of her first season with the Billikens, that she is more than qualified for the position.
Besides her personal coaching experience, it is evident that Tillett has the coaching genes in her family. Her father coached basketball and soccer, and her mother was also a soccer coach. Her siblings also display great leadership in the field, with one brother as a soccer coach, one as a basketball coach and one as a robotics coach. Tillett, however, was the first of her family to earn a coaching position at the collegiate level.
Tillett earned her Bachelor’s of Science in Kinesiology from The College of William and Mary in 1999. She played as a guard and served as a captain of the women’s basketball team during
her senior year. After her time at The College of William and Mary, her success in coaching took off. After spending time coaching a high school in Virginia, Tillett spent three years as a WNBA scout with the Atlanta Dream. From there, her college coaching career began.
Coach Tillett spent the 2013-14 season as Assistant Coach of Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s Division II women’s basketball program before taking a position at Navy, where she quickly moved from Recruiting Coordinator to Assistant Coach. In 2018, Tillett was named Head Coach of Longwood University’s women’s team, where she transformed the team within four years and led them to the program’s first ever appearance in the NCAA March Madness Tournament during their 2021-22 season.
When Tillett transitioned to Saint Louis University in Spring 2022, she brought four of her previous seasons’ players with her from Longwood University. These players include senior Kyla McMakin, sophomore Kennedy Calhoun, redshirt freshman Isabel Tillett and junior Briana Johns. With a team consisting of transfers, veteran players and new freshman, Tillett was able to capitalize on the talent of her team to win the Atlantic 10 Championship and earn the first ever bid to the NCAA March Madness Tournament in
SLU Women’s Basketball history. By accomplishing this feat, she became the second coach ever to lead two different teams to the NCAA Tournament in two consecutive seasons.
In an early season interview, Tillett explains that her team has a positive and resilient attitude, which later proved to take them far in the postseason. In the days leading up to the Billikens’ NCAA Tournament debut, the coach discussed the growing popularity that women’s basketball is gaining nationwide and how it is beneficial to the sports’ continued evolution. Tillett refers to the positive recognition that women’s basketball has gained in recent years after being asked about the broadcast expansion of early-tournament games at a press conference. “You can hear these stories of these women that strive so hard to be good in the classroom, to be good on the court, to be good in their communities,” said Tillett. “And so each opportunity that we take a step forward with our game draws in new fans and new viewers.” Both the head coach and the players have expressed their gratitude for the opportunity to play in the tournament and make history for the Billikens. With such success in her early career with Saint Louis, Rebecca Tillet is sure to give fans and players something to look forward to in upcoming seasons.
The XFL’s St. Louis Battlehawks are 4-2. Meanwhile, St. Louis City Soccer Club has started their inaugural season by making history as a club with a five-game win streak. For a city that has suffered so much in professional sports, the universe is finally paying its dues. St. Louis has lost three major teams and it is only fair that the ones they’ve just gained are off to great starts.
The first departure from St. Louis occurred in 1968, when the Hawks NBA franchise was sold by founder Ben Kerner to real estate developer Tom Sanders, who moved them to Atlanta. This followed a dispute with the city regarding the lessthan-desirable circumstances of their stadium. After the franchise moved from Milwaukee, the St. Louis Hawks were instantly a dominant force in the Western Division, especially after trading away Bill Russell for Saint Louis University legend “Easy Ed” Macauley and young star, Cliff Hagan. With an All-Star trio led by the NBA’s first ever Most Valuable Player, Bob Pettit and fellow Hall of Fame talents, Macauley and Hagan, the Hawks won the 1958 NBA Championship, the franchise’s only championship to date. During their time in St. Louis, a thirteen-year stint, the Hawks went 553452 and only missed the playoffs once in 1962. They played in four championship series and nine division finals series. 31 All-Star selections from that time came out of St. Louis, with 16 coming from Pettit, Hagan and Macauley.
St Louis’ best hope for professional basketball to return is for either the WNBA or NBA G-League to expand. The WNBA last expanded in 2008, with the addition of the Atlanta Dream. Currently with only twelve teams, WNBA Commissioner, Cathy Engelbert, has been very vocal about expanding in the future. While St. Louis is not currently high on her list, with major markets such as the Bay Area and Miami without a team, further down the line St. Louis could emerge as a candidate for expansion.
Another option for expansion could be a minor-league affiliate to an NBA team. Commissioner Adam Silver has been just as vocal
as Engelbert about hoping to expand, but the media consensus is that he will choose Seattle and Las Vegas as the new cities. Should the NBA expand, they would reach 32 teams–the NBA G League is currently at 28 affiliate teams. The unaffiliated NBA teams are the Portland Trail Blazers, Phoenix Suns and the two expansion franchises. St. Louis could be among the four new affiliates. Geographically, St. Louis would be in the Northwest Division, where the Blazers currently play and where the Seattle franchise would operate as well.
The most famous departure from St. Louis came in 2015, when the NFL controversially moved the St. Louis Rams to Los Angeles. The city of St. Louis settled a lawsuit with the NFL over the relocation in 2021 for almost $800 million. The Rams spent 21 seasons in St. Louis, during which they made the playoffs five times, achieved two Super Bowl appearances and in 1999, the team won its first championship since 1951. The Rams were St. Louis’ second football team, received in 1995, less than a decade after the Cardinals relocated to Phoenix.
The Cardinals had played in St. Louis since 1960, but left in 1987 for the same reason as the Hawks in the past and the Rams in the future: disagreement with the city regarding their stadium. Ask any St. Louis native, and they would tell you about how Rams owner, Stan Kroenke, betrayed the city and how the NFL deceived all of St. Louis when they claimed the city’s plan was too expensive for the franchise to be deemed viable.
It wasn’t until 2020 that football would return to the city. WWE Chairman Vince McMahon chose to revive his ill-fated 2001 competitor to the NFL, the XFL. On Dec. 5, 2018, St. Louis was announced as one of the eight cities to host an XFL team. The Battlehawks sold out their first home game, a 24-11 victory against the Dallas Renegades in The Dome at America’s Center. The Battlehawks would finish the first half of their season 3-2 before the XFL suspended operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson purchased the XFL in August 2020 and in April 2022
confirmed that the Battlehawks would be one of the five franchises not relocating for the revival. Football was in St. Louis to stay. The return of the Battlehawks occurred alongside the arrival of St. Louis City Soccer Club (City SC), the MLS’ expansion into the city. In August 2019, City SC was confirmed by the MLS to be its 28th franchise and play began on Feb. 25, 2023, with a 3-2 win against Austin. City SC has started strong with a 5-0 record.
In June 2022, ESPN released an article discussing City SC’s interest in having an NWSL counterpart. With the NWSL confirmed to expand to Salt Lake City and expected to expand into the Bay Area for its thirteenth and fourteenth teams, interest in hosting the league’s fifteenth club has come from over half a dozen cities, including St. Louis. With time, NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman is likely to accept St. Louis’ bid, especially if she hopes to achieve the same reach as the MLS.
With the success of the Battlehawks and the City SC, St. Louis sports fans have every right to be optimistic about St. Louis being a market for future expansion. St. Louis is a medium-sized market, with a devoted fanbase. As the WNBA and
"I’m going to college next year and I don’t know if I should stay with my boyfriend. We’ve been together for a while now but I feel like it would be stressful for me to do long distance. I lost most of my high school years so I want to be able to explore during college. What do I do?"
I have been with my partner for four years. For three of those four years, we have gone to different colleges hours apart. It was difficult at first. Heartbreaking. There was jealousy sometimes. Insecurity, fear, and missing each other. This lead to candid conversations, building incredible trust, finding new ways to express our love and have engaging conversations from a distance. It was painful at first, sure, but it was the most life changing experience for us both. We have learned so much about ourselves, and each other. We have developed separate identities, separate groups of friends, separate hobbies – then at the end of the night, we reconvene and tell each other all about it.
I think we would’ve really struggled to build our own identities if we lived in the same place, because the truth is that we are clingy. We are best friends. If we had the option, we’d go everywhere together, and all we’d ever be known as is the other’s partner. We both have really appreciated this challenge – and the ways in which it has established our own unique identities and helped us build incredible communication skills and trust for one another.
That being said, it isn’t for everyone. For some, if their partner isn’t right in front of them, it can be difficult to stay motivated to work on the relationship. If you are going into your first year with the desire to explore your options, then I think you have answered your own question. There is nothing wrong with that. And that being said, you know yourself. If you know long distance isn’t for you, save yourself the hardship. Make the choice that is right for you, your relationship, and the circumstances. I support you either way!
XO, BeckySpring has officially sprung. With it, comes the delightful ecosystems that have been sleeping for the past few months which have opened their blossoms and developed new leaves. So many new smells and colors invade my senses, and I am reminded of how much I missed seeing green. But when one looks closer at the beautiful flowers, trees and bushes, they might notice something off.
These invaders, non-native plants, are one of the most detrimental aspects of a natural ecosystem. Yes, ecosystems have many dangers that are not native, such as people, cars, dogs, and more. However, students and faculty at Saint Louis University must begin to truly understand the detriments of planting non-native flowers simply for aesthetic appeal.
For starters, we must discuss the importance of native plants. These plants are best suited for the insects that populate a particular ecosystem. They also best help support pollinators, which include organisms ranging from bees to bats.
The second most important thing about native plants is that they are best suited to shelter native animals. On top of providing physical protection (for example, certain native trees provide ideal nesting conditions for native birds), they also provide food for native animals in the form of fruit, seeds and more.
Native plants are also better suited to the environment; in their care, they need less fertilizer and toxic bug sprays to survive. Although all plants can improve air quality, native plants can also prevent surface water runoff that non-native plants are potentially unsuited for.
Plants native to the region are also more capable of taking deep roots as they are suited best for the area’s weather because they have evolved and adapted to the local soil and weather conditions and are generally more capable of absorbing water.
The best non-native plants can do is harm and compete with native plant species, the worst is choking out native plants entirely. By being introduced into a non-native habitat, invasive
species compete with the plants for space, resources, pollinators and more. Invasive species being introduced into an ecosystem can deplete the native plants or eradicate them entirely. An extreme example of this is Kudzu, which can take over an entire forest in as little time as a few days. Ecosystems are delicate and complex systems of plants and animals susceptible to even the slightest change in conditions. If a non-native plant destroys even one plant species, irreversible damage can cause an ecosystem to collapse.
Some non-native plants to Missouri that are common include: bush honeysuckle, autumn olive, amur cork tree and burning bush.
Some native Missouri plants that are beneficial are milkweed, eastern redcedar, blue lobelia and aromatic sumac.
It is essential that SLU supports native ecosystems and fosters pollinators in areas around campus. To do that, they must make an effort to plant and maintain species that are native to Missouri and are capable of contributing to the health of the local ecosystem. Missouri is classified as having a continental climate and therefore must make sure that the plants are suited to the climate and planted during a season that allows for the native plants to grow and prosper.
The most recent evidence that SLU has done anything to support the planting of native flowers and pollinators is the article “Grounds Services Updates Landscaping Practices to Support Sustainability Efforts” published in 2017. The article discussed the efforts by SLU to plant more flowers that are native in order to allow graduate students to study bee populations as well as to foster the health of productive ecosystems on campus grounds. The article also discusses how along with planting locally found flowers, SLU was reducing its pesticide use and switching to a more naturally based fertilizer.
So much of what students are used to seeing on campus is nothing more than grass. Though the green of spring grass is a welcome comparison to the colorless winter, so much more could be done to make our campus a more colorful place. It is time that SLU put in the effort to support more native plants and foster development in native ecosystems while simultaneously adding natural beauty to its campus. This way, students and staff can enjoy spring blossoms while knowing the university does more for the environment than just look pretty.
If you have ever had a moment where you have just fallen asleep, yet you were aware of the fact that you were sleeping, you were probably lucid dreaming. Whether it is for a couple of minutes at the beginning of a nap or in the middle of the night after waking up, it is fairly common to have lucid dreams. Lucid dreaming is more than just an intriguing way to dream whatever you wish; it has the powerful potential to alter our consciousness and change our waking behaviors.
Lucid dreaming was first recognized in western culture by Aristotle. In Parva Naturali, Aristotle examines the cognitive neuroscience of sleep.
Aristotle wrote that “often when one is asleep, there is something in consciousness which declares that what then presents itself is but a dream,” indicating knowledge of lucid dreaming in antiquity.
It is likely that lucid dreaming was not only recognized but actually practiced in eastern culture before the time of Aristotle. Buddhists practice “silent illumination,” a nearly exact match of practice to that of lucid dreaming.
When an individual lucid dreams, they develop an awareness of their state of dreaming and can alter the narrative. Essentially, they can choose who the characters are, what happens and most importantly the outcome. The ability to change the outcome of a scenario is key, allowing individuals to potentially access new skills.
Take, for example, lucid dreaming for athletes. In one study, researchers investigated motor practice in lucid dreams and subsequent outcomes in waking life. Athletes were taught how to lucid dream and practiced motor movements during their sleep were then compared to groups who completed mental practice, physical practice and those who did not practice at all. Athletes who used lucid dreaming practice (LDP) experienced improved performance.
“Practice in lucid dreams is effective in improving performance,” according to Tadas
Stumbrys, a researcher at the Institute of Sports and Sports Sciences.
This may be for a variety of reasons, all of which have to do with the mental capacity of these athletes. For one, lucid dreaming requires intense focus. Developing the skill to focus translates well into athletic performance. Additionally, practicing motor skills in dreams and experiencing positive outcomes can improve confidence, leading to improved performance. Ultimately, the mental simulation of these motor skills during sleep is neurologically the same as practicing the skills in waking hours – athletes’ brains perceive these practices as the same.
themselves. None of these options aim to manipulate reality, because that is impossible, but what if it was?
Alternative therapy options are beginning to crop up that allow us to alter the memories and perception of reality itself. These processes work on varying levels, with some working to fade memories, others changing outcomes and some even erasing memories entirely. If an individual is resistant to both pharmaceutical and traditional methods of therapy, there could be another option: Lucid Dreaming Treatment (LDT). Once lucid dreaming skills are in place, a dreamer has the freedom to choose their dream. This creates an opportunity for cognitive restructuring, an ideal method for coping with trauma.
That funny feeling when a dream, good or bad, sticks with you for days is very real. At times, dreams can be so vivid we become confused with reality. LDT could be the chance to choose to get confused with reality; dreams have the potential to affect waking life. If it is used to revisit trauma and change the outcome, this new memory may come to replace the old one. An individual can gain a sense of power knowing that they have more control over the scenario. Is that what happened at the moment the traumatic event occurred? No, most likely not. However, if we perceive a certain reality, it transforms into our reality.
Lu Lucid dreaming might not just be effective for achiev ing athletic goals, it could be promising in the medical world, as well. As concerns over the growing monopoly of big pharma rise, there is a demand for more alternative methods to treating mental health issues, and more specifically with processing trauma. In most traditional methods of therapy, there is some sort of acceptance of reality or motivation to change the reactions to reality. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Eye Movement Desensitization, and Reprocessing are all therapies that target the repercussions of events, but not the events
Because of its ability to indulge learners in the concept of consciousness, lucid dreaming can be compared to psilocybin mushrooms. Their hallucinogenic effects, though, bring along significant risks. Lucid dreaming offers a low-risk alternative that may be the ideal solution to consciousness exploration. Whether we are seeking an awakening of sorts, changes in our waking actions or perhaps a more healing experience, lucid dreaming provides an ideal opportunity to connect with our own consciousness.
It is no secret that housing prices in the US have gone up. At the end of 2013, the average new home cost $334,400. At the end of 2022, that cost shot up to $535,800. Many factors influence this jump, ranging from zoning restrictions to opposition from people who just do not want anything built to the culture of a house with big lawns. Whatever the specific reason is, they are almost always connected to each other.
To start, there is simply not enough supply of housing units in the country. According to the US Census, vacancy rates are at historic lows. Vacancy rate is the proportion of housing units, rental or owned, that are currently occupied. At the end of 2022, the vacancy rate for rental units was at 5.8%. The last time vacancies were this low was the late 1970s. A low vacancy rate is not healthy for anyone because it forces people to spend a larger proportion of their budget on housing. In turn, they spend less on other necessities, or worse, will have to pick and choose what bills get paid and which do not.
There are often cited statistics
that say there are more homes than homeless people in the country, which is technically true. But that argument falls apart pretty quickly once questions start being asked. Where exactly are those homes? Are they in the middle of nowhere, falling apart and not meeting code? Are there any good jobs nearby? What about people’s support systems?
Recently, the fight over housing has splashed onto the front pages. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is proposing a law that would force towns and cities to build more housing with Colorado Gov. Jared Polis proposing a similar measure. California is cracking down on cities that block housing, and Oregon has recently abolished singlefamily zoning statewide. These are the states that have enacted or proposed reforms to bring down housing costs and that is without mentioning the cities that go down their own path. You would think that people would support this, but they do not. Oftentimes, people who oppose denser housing will claim several reasons as to why it should not be built in this particular spot. They agree it should be built, but just somewhere else.
They have been nicknamed NIMBYs, Not In My Backyard, for short. They say they have concerns about traffic, noise, crime, neighborhood character changing too quickly or their property values going down. They are certainly valid reasons if you wanted to preserve your city in amber and pretend that change does not exist. Of course that comes at a price. Unaffordable housing for anyone who was not lucky enough to buy a house at a certain time and unsafe conditions that are the perfect storm for a catastrophic fire. A consequence of NIMBY cities around the country is that young adults can no longer stay in the cities they grew up in. St. Louis does not have this problem on a large scale… yet. It is no secret that the city has thousands of unused and abandoned lots that would be perfect for a house, apartment, duplex anything. It is not improbable that sometime in the next 20 years, many of those lots will be used. However, with the onset of new construction, like that happening on the new National Geospatial Intelligence Agency campus in North City, comes the valid concerns of gentrification.
Gentrification is the process of longtime residents being displaced and/or outpriced out of their homes by newcomers, who often then attract new business and development. The area around SLU is an obvious example of gentrification, with the opening of the City Foundry, and the construction of Target and TopGolf. Rising property values are generally a good thing, but that is only if the owner is able to pay the property taxes on it. Oftentimes, the people who get priced out of their own homes are no longer able to do so because they have lower incomes or are on fixed incomes. To accommodate newcomers, new apartments and developments are also built. Stopping these developments would stop newcomers from gentrifying
By STEVEN LUM Opinion Editorneighborhoods would make sense, but that is not what happens. If anything, stopping new housing developments speeds up gentrification. Newcomers are often young, wealthy and generally do not have kids. That allows them to have extra disposable income they can use on a nicer place to live or a larger budget towards buying and fixing a house. America’s most common language is not English, it is money. Those with extra disposable income will displace residents with lower incomes, especially if no housing developments are built to accommodate new residents. Look to big cities all across the country where new developments are killed in the name of stopping gentrification. The worst offender of them all is San Francisco. Projects are regularly derailed from bogus environmental impact claims, fraudulent claims of how an apartment building will raise prices in the surrounding area instead of lowering them, how it will add to the traffic, how the neighborhood character will drastically change and, of course, more crime. A meta-analysis of papers conducted by UCLA’s Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies broadly concluded that... Scan
By AMEYA PADAKANTI Contributor
Close your eyes. Take a deep breath. Hold it in. Feel a sense of peace. Well, if you are trying that right now, I am here to say that you are doing yoga. Congratulations! But holding your breath is not the only way you can do yoga. It is one of many, but there is so much more. Right now, I am going to answer any burning questions you have about yoga, so enjoy the ride.
A textbook definition of yoga is the practice of aligning the body and mind perfectly. To put it in layperson’s terms: yoga is a technique to help people feel relaxed. It can help you destress before a chemistry test or before giving a speech. Furthermore, yoga is a practice that has been present for thousands of years. Unfortunately, it is losing relevance today due to obsolescence and social stigma, but that should not be the case. I know it has a connotation of being super spiritual and obscure, but that is not what yoga is at all. Anyone can engage in it. Do not pay heed to what society thinks.
If you are starting to get interested, let us talk about some benefits of yoga. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, there are nine benefits for people who do yoga. Some of them include improving strength and balance, building muscle tone, improving cardiovascular health and even boosting both one’s mood and energy. Personally, I have seen many benefits of yoga. My mind becomes much calmer in the morning and I do not fret about an upcoming midterm or other anxieties I have. I am in a peaceful state which is enough to convince me to do yoga every day. I am addicted to that calmness.
The first thing that probably comes to mind when I say yoga is probably the downward dog. Although that is
a famous yoga pose, there is so much more to discover and talk about. In my experience, there are three main types of yoga that people can do: Hatha, Kundalini and Vinyasa. Before we get into the nitty-gritty of these styles, I need to explain one concept: chakras. I know this might sound too spiritual, but chakras are essential to yoga. By definition, chakras are places in your body that are energy dense. There are seven points from the lumbar spine to your head, connecting different organ systems. Keep this in mind since different yoga styles target some if not all these chakras.
Hatha yoga is known to restore the balance of the body by engaging your seven chakras. Some postures under this form include Cobra, Triangle and Standing Forward bend. These forms are hard to explain verbally, so I will trust your diligence in learning more using Google. You will probably need some space if you want to try the poses out.
Kundalini yoga is another type of yoga that involves breathing. You can do it in a quiet space anywhere. You just need to be sitting down. This yoga starts with sitting crisscrossed and manually closing one nostril while slowly inhaling air using the other. Hold your breath until you feel you are ready to let go and then (this is the hardest part) slowly release it calmly.
Lastly, Vinyasa yoga incorporates both breathing and stretching techniques, so you could think of it as a mixture of Hatha and Kundalini. The unique aspect of this practice is that its forms are representative of transitions in a human’s life, from birth to death.
Ok, so now you have all this information about yoga. How can you use it? Well, yoga starts
with baby steps. It is a practice that requires a lot of tenacity. I would recommend starting with just five minutes a day in the morning before you go to your first class. It is not going to do you any harm. Just try it out. If it does not work for you, that is perfectly fine. In the end, all I ask is that you give yourself a chance to focus on yourself. Society nowadays does not put emphasis on every individual’s health. We are too focused on everyone else. So, I sincerely ask you to give this a chance. It might be your way to love yourself.
