True to the Saint Anselm senior experience, I’m writing this the day after senior formal, reflecting on four years on the Hilltop and on how much my feet hurt from dancing in heels last night. 

Freshman Flannery wouldn’t have guessed just how many hours of her “conversatio of a good life” over the next few years would be spent in the newsroom, in the (definitely haunted) basement of Alumni. She wouldn’t be surprised, though, that writing her way through college had connected her to the Anselmian community in so many little ways that added up over time.

Some of my favorite pieces I’ve written for the Crier have been opportunities to highlight the people or events that have made me feel like I belonged on the Hilltop. I wrote a feature story on Martha Dickerson, longtime Geisel Library head of circulation, when she retired after the fall 2022 semester. I wrote an alumna spotlight featuring Dr. Emily Orlando, the keynote speaker for the Sept. 2023 academic convocation honoring the anniversary of women’s admission to all academic programs at the College. As a woman set to graduate in the 50th anniversary year, I’m grateful to Dr. Orlando as well as to every woman who came before me. I loved interviewing my castmates and directors to write articles on Abbey Players productions, and I had the opportunity to cover the TEDA student panel two years in a row.

Calling late nights in the newsroom the “good” part of that good life may be a stretch, but I am grateful for everything the Crier has brought to my college experience. Along the way, I wrote a lot, consumed an ungodly amount of caffeine, stared at the computer in the newsroom until I saw Adobe InDesign boxes when I closed my eyes, and even made friends with some of the Alumni ghosts.