Letter from the Editor

Dear Reader,

We’re just past the midway point of the fall semester, and the freshness of the new school year has worn away. In this Letter, I wanted to give you a brief reminder to continue to be present both inside and outside the classroom and, especially in light of the upcoming election, to continue being a part of the communities you’ve shaped even as you face the reality of a seemingly infinite list of tasks.

It happens all too often: I’ll find that I haven’t talked to someone for an extended period because I’ve told myself I didn’t have time. I’ll find that I haven’t sought out news or information relevant to me because I’ve told myself I didn’t have time. And at times it becomes very apparent: if I’m not eating dinner with my family because I’m “busy,” it’s clear that I am not present.

All of us have responsibilities beyond our personal tasks. Oftentimes, these are responsibilities related to contributing, being present in, and creating dialogue within the communities you’ve helped to build. During a time like now in the school year, these may involve critically engaging with discussion both inside and outside of class or simply spending time with your family. In the context of the election, this kind of activity may mean regularly partaking in discourse beyond simply scanning headlines on algorithm-curated news digests, scrolling through social media, or hearing your friends and family talk about it.

At the Pixel Journal, we recognize that it’s important to create dialogue around experiences and struggles that are at times all too common for OHS students. By taking OHS for what it is, we hope that we are able to represent the experiences you’ve had at this school. If you have an opinion regarding the current state of student life or the support OHS provides to its students, we would love to hear from you, whether through a guest article or a message through Letters to the Community on our homepage. These opinions matter, and we provide a space for you to articulate them.

I hope this Letter encourages you to think about what mindset you want to bring and what thoughts you want to contribute to the communities you’re a part of, both within and beyond OHS, and what kind of environment you want to cultivate within them. And, on a lighter note, I hope, as always, that you’ll enjoy the articles we have published in our latest issue.

Cheers,

Paige