“Settling into my space at RV”: Abigail Rodriguez, Arts & Culture Editor

I began at RV my sophomore year of high school and the transition was very hard for me, so much so that I only started joining clubs my junior year. I joined the Key club and Spanish club that year and began my involvement at RV. That being said, I spent the entirety of my junior year settling into my space at RV and was ready to take on even more my senior year. 

Once senior year rolled around I became the Vice President of the Spanish Club and I signed onto the Holly Spirit as a Section Editor for Arts & Culture because I needed to develop my leadership skills and those were the perfect roles to do just that. I knew it would be a challenge for me personally because I’d be putting myself out there in a way I hadn’t before, but I was ready. 

My time at the Holly Spirit has been nothing short of amazing. I had never taken a journalism class, and honestly wasn’t too fond of writing but everything was made so simple thanks to our training. I absolutely loved reading through staff writers’ work, every week I was even more surprised by the caliber of work that was being done and how obviously passionate the writers were; it made my job a lot easier! I also enjoyed seeing writers grow whether it be with their writing skills or interviewing skills. Although at some points in the year it was hard to come up with ideas, the enthusiasm of our section and their eagerness to pitch ideas and write about things they’re passionate about, helped immensely. I’m probably going to miss our weekly ice breaker questions because it was a time where we got to really get to know each other as individuals and not just writers. 

I’m going to miss seeing my section every week and going to our all staff meetings which are always entertaining. I’ve learned to step out of my comfort zone and be open to new situations, all while gaining responsibility, and leadership skills. I have to thank Sherm for all of the work she’s put in and dedicated to this paper and to us as journalists, without her guidance we wouldn’t have run as smoothly as we did. To all my Arts and Culture kiddos, I hope you guys keep up the amazing work!