EVERY HOOFPRINT

The following poem is one of many reflections and feelings that I had during my academic process. This article “The Academic Cliffhanger, My Letters from the Edge” may continue to be a miniseries of my reflections through letters and poems. The 10 Stages of My Numbness: I wear a dreaded face and walk with it on I look like a zombie, I'm turning into one I can't feel anymore, what if I bit off my tongue? Listing all my stages of becoming numb Two things I lost, work ethic and

This is a picture of a bank built in 1866 in Danbury, Conn.  Compare that to a modern bank, say, your local M&T or Wells Fargo. Perhaps those modern buildings are more practical and efficient, but I cannot stroll past a brick building like this Danbury bank and not appreciate its charm with its rows of lined brick with a golden clock and adorned arches above the windows.  Someone might bring up the obvious point that buildings like this cost more to create in materials and de

I never thought of myself as a good writer. I grew up in an artistic family, so people assumed I was naturally creative, naturally talented and naturally capable of anything in that world. My house was full of love, but it was also full of expectations. Expectations that always, somehow, pointed to me. My mother reached the highest academic and professional positions. The message was clear. I was supposed to honor the efforts of everyone before me by going even further. And b

Photo by Emily Ranquist: By: Lynelle Fernandez When I was in high school, I took five Advanced Placement (AP) courses that transferred as credit when I enrolled in college. Having 15 credits before my first semester meant I was able to graduate in three and a half years instead of the usual four. Although I’ll finish classes this December, I will attend Commencement with the rest of my senior peers next May. This should be great news. Why am I not excited? There are plenty of

Photo by RDNE Stock project on Pexels If there’s one thing this Thanksgiving taught me, it’s that some family members have a time limit for how long they’ll show they love you. There’s a sweet spot. Family members will love you no matter what if you’re part of two specific age ranges: young children or the elderly. When you’re young, people adore you because you’re so cute, naive and full of energy. It’s okay to act out because you still have time to grow. When you’re a senio

Sometimes it takes a shift, or a change. Sometimes, it takes a new environment. For me, it took a trip. That’s right, it took me a trip to Baltimore to finally get my question answered. Maybe I couldn’t find the answer because I wasn’t asking around, but that’s just because I thought that the answer would have come from within. Ever since my drive and work ethic had changed toward my academics, I’ve been asking myself why did the change happen? What is so different about this

In a bid to balance a multi-million dollar loss in revenue from international students, the University of New Haven has fired or merged the responsibilities of some 46 faculty and staff members since June 2025. Jens Frederiksen, UNH president, and other cabinet leaders confirmed growing student concerns about missing staff during a public assembly with the undergraduate student government association in October. Included in that figure are staff members under the umbrella of

This might be the most important photo I have ever taken.  I started taking photos when I was 12 with the first device I ever got, my iPad.I wanted to immortalize my memories, so I would never forget.  I am still at the beginning of my photography journey, but something about this moment feels like the first time the world handed me a story that was bigger than me. Street photography is part of my life. I am taking photojournalism as an elective this semester, and I promised

To whom it may concern,  Have you ever asked yourself who is holding the pen to your life story?  There are moments when you look back at your life as if it were a book, every experience a page, every year a chapter. The funny thing is you realize you never actually agreed to write it. Page after page and chapter after chapter have already been written for you. Paths you did not choose or ask for. Decisions were made in courts and conference rooms where your presence was not

This is the story of a headless mannequin’s journey through tragedy and triumph, as well as how she ended up at a college house concert party, as the center of attention for the first time in her life. In order to properly understand how Rachel was thrown into this life-changing situation, we have to first understand how I came to meet her.  On a Saturday, I and a fellow classmate ventured out to the far away land of Goodwill Outlets. In this space between traditional thrifti

I vividly remember my mom telling me to flip my head over and applying Aussie Sprunch Spray in my hair when I was a kid. I had brown ringlets with blonde highlights because my mom would also spray Sun-In all over my curls. Everyone called me Shirley Temple and people with naturally straight hair would tell me that they wish they had mine. I felt the same exact way. All I ever wanted was their hair. You can only brush curly hair when it’s wet, or else you’d look like a circus

As the world recovered from the Covid pandemic, the West Haven Veterans Hospital allowed 25 youth volunteers back into the building in the summer of 2022. I was one of them, three years ago. All masked up at the tail end of the pandemic, I initially got the gig to get community service hours for my high school. I eventually racked up about 130 hours that summer. Most of the patient escort job involved waiting for elevators, sitting at the front desk and taking phone calls, pu