We light the fire

(Teams use their knowledge of current events to battle each other in News Mania, a news trivia game. Photo by Jeremiah Armenta.)

There is a fire that kindles inside every one of us. I think that is what drove us here. Perhaps the decision-makers who chose us looked specifically for that quality. When we’re together listening to speakers, these lit candles set a glow in the room. Our coach, Mary Ann Hogan, helped us believe that the fire in our chests isn’t just a figment of our imagination but something real that can light the hearts of others. Chips must have had a fire fit to fill a light house. The efforts by all who are helping us get into journalism tell me that Chips must have been a man truly loved by those he touched. Wrapping up this weekend makes me sad; my new friends might not see me for a while. But the end of orientation also brings joy. I am about to embark on a journey into the horizon with my starboard sails up.

The most gratifying thing I will take home is the shirt that I won for my blue team in News Mania. Members of the red team continue to yammer of their defeat, insisting that there was a conspiracy. Deep down, they know that we were just smarter.

-- Aman Mehrzai, Ohlone College, The Oakland (Calif.) Tribune