On exiting
Reflecting with hard-earned optimism
Levy Le–The Tech
As I exit MIT after four long years, I internalize one specific message that The Tech has instilled in me, regardless of my specific title in any given year: that you can just do it. Go write about that topic. Cover that event. Interview that Nobel Laureate. Do that cool thing. To anyone reading, this seems obvious, and I can already picture you rolling your eyes. But for me, as a sophomore, seeing articles that I either worked on and edited appear in print biweekly — courtesy of our amazing production staff, copy staff, and many others — served as a constant reminder of my autonomy.
At first, that manifested as writing both silly and less-silly Campus Life articles, sharing tidbits about me with the amorphous world — some more polished than others. As V144 Campus Life Editor, I also had the distinct pleasure of editing other people’s work and learning so much about their lives and creative process. In fact, I found writing “in public” so addicting that I took a bunch of literature and writing classes and wrote (part of) an MIT campus novel for my 21W major thesis! This absolutely would not have been possible without the support of every single individual in The Tech. So for that, I’m very thankful.
To be clear, it hasn’t been all fun and games. My experience at The Tech had its fair share of staffing and fiscal issues, but those problems have made me a stronger person. The Tech taught me to chase what I want and empowered me to declare my writing major — even though it’s a road less traveled by. The Tech taught me to persist, problem-solve, and always ask “what if?”, a mindset that helped me get career opportunities that I never would’ve dreamed of before. The Tech taught me to handle embarrassing mistakes — both my own and others — with grace. But more generally, The Tech taught me the value of being friends with people who stick together when times are tough, when deadlines are quickly approaching, when problem sets are piling up, but the regularly scheduled show — whether the newspaper or something in your personal life — must go on.
So, when I become old and look through my yearbook, I’m not going to feel bitter that The Tech has a much smaller group photo than other organizations. Because I know that the highs that we embraced and lows that we weathered created a tight-knit group of student journalists who are connected by a rather beautiful experience. And I’m so blessed to have been a small part of that.
PS: In case you’re wondering — I have always used em-dashes a lot!