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Despite Anxiety
Chronic anxiety lets dread be the guiding force of my actions and inactions. To do something is to fear the consequences of not doing it, and vice versa. Perhaps anxiety shortens the thought process leading up to the action, eliminating room for secondary motivators — such as the sense of accomplishment and intrinsic joy from the action itself. The “motivation” to do the readings for a class is to avoid asking a question that could have easily been answered in the reading, or to prevent other awkward states of affairs. Thinking further ahead, it is the fear of missing crucial information and being underprepared for the final exam that motivates me, as well as the potential impact on my graduate school application. These are not all external fears, as it is impossible to accurately quantify the extent to which my action affects the future; as a result, the level of anxiety will not always correlate to the severity of its true consequences.
Though anxiety makes work more efficient, it only considers the act of submission as the highest goal and causes the quality of my work to suffer. It is efficient in achieving quickly an “expectable minimum,” where the grade and feedback I receive will be within expectation, never exceeding it. Having inadvertently decided that this is the only attainable middle ground between the results of completely feeding into my anxiety and avoiding anxious activities altogether, I become complacently content. This complacency is problematic because it arises in response to an anxiety that is disproportionate to the object of anxiety, where the result of complacency leads me to consider it the only option, continuing the vicious cycle.
Anxiety is multifaceted, with treatments ranging from medication to cognitive behavioral therapy. As a result, there are countless tools at my disposal to attempt to curb it. Many of these address the immediate symptoms of anxiety rather than the cause itself, such as box breathing, grounding techniques, and anxiolytics with a short half-life. These are indispensable in bringing my anxiety down to a point where it can be managed by my conscious efforts. However, they are insufficient by themselves in providing long-lasting relief. The grounding techniques become less effective over time as I get used to identifying objects while simultaneously being anxious, and some medications can build tolerance and dependency.
To find a longer-lasting solution in addition to short-term relief, I employ the strategy of Socrates in his “swan song”. As described in Plato’s Phaedo, Socrates compares himself to swans that sing louder when they are nearing death, not because they are mourning but because they are joyful about returning to their god. Though an object of anxiety is not usually as existential or ultimate as death, the cause of anxiety is in uncertainty, just as death is the ultimate uncertainty. By praising Apollo while approaching his execution, Socrates acknowledges the impending uncertainty and finds joy in it for the new reality it will provide. Likewise, I can address anxiety by framing its object as a genuine opportunity for change and appreciating my current circumstances precisely because it is subject to unfathomable change.
~ Benjamin Ha `27
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“They’d Make Me a Star”: Notable Musicians from Maine
Noah Kahan put Maine on the modern indie-folk map with his hit song “Maine.” Kahan, a fellow New-Englander himself, hails from Vermont. But what — or rather, who — does Maine have to offer?
Patty Griffin is a folk icon from Old Town, Maine. At 16, she bought a guitar for $50, and after a divorce in 1994, she began performing in Boston coffeehouses, until she was scouted by A&M records. She gained recognition in her forties, and is still releasing music in her early sixties. Griffin’s website boasts: “Over two decades, the 2x GRAMMY Award winner — and 7x nominee — and Americana Music Association Lifetime Achievement award winner, has crafted a remarkable body of work in progress that prompted the New York Times to hail her for ‘[writing] cameo-carved songs that create complete emotional portraits of specific people…[her] songs have independent lives that continue in your head when the music ends.’” In 2007, Griffin received the Artist of the Year award from Americana Music Association, and her album Children Running Through won Best Album. Her twelfth studio album, Crown of Roses, was released this past July.
Did you know a Mainer coined the term ‘Rockabilly?’ Bill Flagg was born in 1934 in his family home on the road that is now Kennedy Memorial Drive in Waterville. His family moved to Connecticut in 1941, but he continued to spend summers in Waterville with his aunt and uncle. He graduated in 1952, the year after the first rock and roll song, “Rocket 88,” was released by Jackie Brenston. He immediately began his career as a radio hit, known as “The Lone Pine Cowboy” across the region. Alongside classmate John Sligar, the duo developed a style mixing R&B, bluegrass, and country, and when banjoist Jody Gibson joined the mix in 1953, the Trio began recording with Tetra Music in New York. It was in one of these sessions that Flagg and Sligar called their work rockabilly, a mash of rock ‘n’ roll and hillbilly. The term and style was soon popularized by larger artists such as Elvis Presley and Carl Perkins, but its roots are right here in Waterville, Maine.
Dick Curless was the Baron of Country Music and a Mainer. This eyepatch-wearing cowboy was born in Fort Fairfield, Maine in 1932, and moved to Massachusetts at eight years old. He began his career in 1948 as a radio show host and a member of the local band, Trail Blazers. He served in the Korean War from 1952 to 1954 and immediately picked up his music career upon his return to Maine. In 1965, he recorded the biggest hit of his career, “A Tombstone Every Mile,” which reached the top 5 of Billboard country charts. The song itself refers to a stretch of road in northern Maine known for many automobile crashes, and became one of over 22 Billboard country hits released by Curless during his career.
Lenny Breau was a guitarist born in 1941 in Auburn, Maine. Likely inspired by his parents, who were professional country musicians, Breau began playing the guitar at just eight years old. At 14, he was already the lead guitarist for his parents’ band and gained the nickname “Lone Pine Junior.” He made his first professional recordings in Westbrook, Maine at 15. He left his parents’ country band in 1959, when his father slapped him in the face for incorporating jazz improvisation. His career as a professional guitarist lasted about 20 years, during which he was a session guitarist, solo artist, teacher, and writer for Guitar Player magazine. His playing blended many styles, including jazz, country, classical, and flamenco. In 1948, his career was cut short when his body was found in the swimming pool of his apartment complex. He died of strangulation. His wife Jewel was the chief suspect, but she was never charged. His documentary, The Genius of Lenny Breau Remembered, was released in 1999, and Ron Forbes-Roberts published a biography titled One Long Tune: The Life and Music of Lenny Breau in 2006. Breau was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1997.
Sources: www.pattygriffin.com/tour-1, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patty_Griffin, https://www.mmone.org/bill-flagg/, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Curless, https://www.mainememory.net/record/148500, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Tombstone_Every_Mile, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lenny_Breau
~ Alayna Blier `26
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Mules Squash Starts Season Playing Columbia University
As the Colby men’s and women’s squash teams hit the road at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, November 15, both teams were filled with optimism and excitement for their upcoming season. On the ride back to Waterville, the group continued to hold their heads high and looked forward to the future, despite the women’s 1–8 loss and the men’s 0–9 loss to Columbia University. The Mules won one match on the women’s side, with Laavanya Kugan `26 getting a score of 3–0 in the number one spot.
This weekend’s match took place in Medford, Massachusetts at Tufts University, as Columbia played a doubleheader — or two matches — on the same day. Gigi McWhorter `29 noted the advantages of arriving a bit early, before stepping onto the courts at 3:00 p.m. “We got to watch [Columbia] play beforehand, scout out the opposition a little bit.”
The Mules knew even before seeing Columbia in action that they would make for tricky competition due to their ranking of tenth in the College Squash Association, while Colby held the seventeenth spot. With the Mules in the underdog position, many players wanted to look at this match as a learning experience.
“[In the future,] I think going in with the mindset that each point is a new point, and just taking it one point at a time [will be] really helpful, at least for me, because it definitely can get frustrating when you’re getting crushed. But, I think overall, the team did a really good job of keeping a cool head,” McWhorter said. Columbia was absolutely on their A-game, even after playing earlier that day. [Although we lost,] everyone played really, really well… so that was really awesome. We had a couple of games that were really tight. Even though we lost, it was a great start to the season, because it’s only up from here.”
From this first match, the group also noticed what went well and kept it in mind for next time. “The men and the women [played] at the same time. So it [was] a lot of fun, because everyone kind of just watched each other and cheered for each other… Cheering for your teammates is so important. The coach and like your teammates watching, are able to pick up on things that you wouldn’t necessarily see. Keeping the team spirit and the camaraderie high is a good lesson to carry forward,” McWhorter said.
Avery LaMotte `29 notes that the team has been actively working to achieve this mindset in their practices. “We had a meeting where we talked about positive self-talk and not letting your emotions show when you’re on court. [We also] had challenge matches yesterday to determine everyone’s ranking. It was good practice for a real match, because you can practice positive self-talk,” LaMotte said.
Both teams feel as though they accomplished their goals, as Nevin Conroy `29 of the men’s team addressed the hope of determining their current standing. “We have a lot of new players, like the ladder’s a little bit different. [We wanted to see] how the team works out. With a match, [you] are just going in there and seeing what you can do to improve when you play. [We wanted to see] what things come up in the match, like, what we can work on as a team,” Conroy said.
Looking to the future, the men’s team has wider accomplishments they hope to achieve, and Seif Ashraf `27 feels confident in their ability to do so. “Our main goal is to reach the top 12 in the country, as we were ranked fourteenth after the end of the season last year… Our goal is to keep improving every day and help the team win. We’re also focused on staying consistent and healthy and bringing some energy to every match,” Ashraf said.
Both teams plan to apply their new knowledge throughout the rest of the season, starting November 22 when the men’s team plays the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the women play Wesleyan University. “[Wesleyan] is going to be a huge deciding match. And historically, this has been a very tight match, and can go either way. So I think everyone’s kind of really looking forward to that,” McWhorter said.
~ Isabella Boggs `29
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The First Snow – The Start of the Next 5 Months of Winter
Early on November 9, Waterville, Maine woke up to the sight of flurries. While they dissipated just as quickly as they came, they were a sign of the soon to be snow-filled campus that many have been eagerly awaiting. Not long after, on November 12, our campus was once again greeted by the sight of flurries. This time however, they coated the campus with snow, and students gathered around places like Miller Library, Dana Hall, and Johnson Pond to admire the first snowfall of the season. Some students brought out skis and sleds, attempting to ride down Chapel Hill, while others slipped and slid on the not-yet-salted roads of campus. The excited buzz of the season change was felt throughout campus, and it only increased when the northern lights were caught in the sky.
For some students, including myself, this was one of our first experiences with snow. As a native Californian who has always lived on the coast, I have only seen snow twice before. This comes as a shock to many students hailing from the Northeast or for those invested in snow sports. While my “California puffer,” as my friends described it, kept me considerably warm, this first snow led me to realize just how cold the winters get in Maine. It was also my own little wake up call to stock up on the winter essentials: base layers, fleeces, and waterproof jackets.
The winter season, which usually stretches from late October to early April, can be seen as a winter wonderland to embrace and admire, but it can also become a battle to overcome. Many students at schools in colder climates deal with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a type of depression that is associated with late fall and early winter. This type of depression is usually fueled by the lack of sunlight during the winter months. With Maine having the earliest sunset in the United States, the amount of daylight really begins to dwindle towards the end of the semester, which can lead to low mood and fatigue. It does not help that our college campus is one of the most geographically isolated and remote in the country.
It is not always so gloomy, though. Surrounded by incredible ski mountains, Colby students have the opportunity to explore the vast amount of nature in Maine. During JanPlan, students are most likely to be found at Sugarloaf or Saddleback Mountain, skiing or snowboarding — activities I hope to try for the first time this January. On campus, students might be seen sledding down Miller Lawn or Chapel Hill. For those like myself that love a cozy day indoors, time is well spent playing board games, completing puzzles, dancing, and even knitting or crocheting winter accessories. Colby also has amazing resources like Garrison-Foster, where students have access to counseling and health services to support students during these tough moments that usually come with the seasonal depression.
Some of the best advice on how to handle winters in Maine have come from students who grew up in cold climates and have experienced the winters in this state. A great example is John Edwards `29, who comes from Southern Maine. According to Edwards, “Winter here is fun for one week, but then it becomes exhausting, soul-sucking, and monotonous, and finding a winter hobby is essential. I like to ski, sled, and when I want to have a more calm night, I read a book with a cup of hot chocolate.”
The first snowfall in Maine acts as a wake-up call, forcing students, especially those new to the Northeast, into adaptation-mode. Having now faced the turning point of Maine’s climate, the true test of navigating the long winter lies ahead. Now, all that’s left to do is turn to the hard-earned wisdom of those who have lived in this frozen landscape before us. Together, we can thrive in the winter wonderland ahead.
~ Catherine Galvez `29
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Gertrude Abercrombie: The Whole World Is a Mystery
The Colby Museum of Art hosted the latest installment of Art Queeries, a program devoted to amplifying queer perspectives and histories within visual art. Rather than functioning as a traditional lecture, the series invites attendees into an open, participatory conversation shaped by collective observation and interpretation. This session was led by Mirken Director of Learning and Engagement Christian Adame, Lunder Curator of American Art Sarah Humphreville, Visiting Assistant Professor of Art Christopher T. Richards, and several Colby students, who guided the audience through the galleries and the evening’s discussion. From the outset, the program emphasized shared inquiry, encouraging visitors to approach each artwork with curiosity and to contribute their own insights as part of the interpretive process.
This session centered on Gertrude Abercrombie, the mid-century Chicago painter whose exhibition The Whole World Is a Mystery is currently on view at the museum. The program, titled “A Continuous Gathering” highlighted not only her paintings but also the vibrant social world she cultivated throughout her life. Abercrombie was known for hosting late-night salons in Chicago that brought together musicians, writers, queer friends, and fellow artists, creating a community where creative exchange and experimentation flourished.
Before turning to individual works, the facilitators situated Abercrombie historically. She spent most of her life in Chicago, painting from the 1930s until the late 1970s. While often associated with surrealism or magical realism, she never fully aligned herself with any movement. One speaker noted that this is partly “why we don’t always know who she is,” but her refusal to fit neatly into categories is also what makes her compelling.
The program then turned to queer art history itself — what it means, and how one might practice it. Richards explained that queer art history is “very, very difficult to define,” and not limited to identifying LGBTQ artists. Instead, queerness can be understood as a “position against the norm,” a way of looking “askance” or “awry” at artworks and institutions. Rather than clinging to fixed narratives, queer interpretation asks viewers to “use their imagination,” to read images “against the grain,” and to embrace ambiguity. Abercrombie’s paintings, with their dreamlike spaces and deliberate strangeness, are especially well suited for this kind of open-ended interpretation.
The event focused on a handful of paintings within the large gallery. The first piece discussed was titled Strange Shadows (Shadow and Substance) (1950). The group gathered with folded chairs before the canvas and began, in true Art Queeries fashion, with an open question: What do you see here?
Attendees pointed first to the shadows, which are symmetrical and orderly yet do not correspond to the objects that supposedly cast them. A woman with her arm outstretched stands on one side of the composition, while her shadow falls in an entirely different place. These discontinuities create a network of “crisscross” relationships that unsettle the viewer’s sense of logic and physical space. The facilitators emphasized that this slippage between object and shadow is a key to the painting’s queerness.
Some contextual interpretation was offered as well, drawn from Abercrombie’s biography. The painting has been linked to a period when Abercrombie was navigating the difficulties of her divorce while raising her daughter. One facilitator noted that the small clock at the painting’s center is set to the time of her daughter’s birth. But even as participants shared their unique takes, it was emphasized that “none of this is easy or simple or easily defined to be there,” and that Abercrombie’s work invites, rather than restricts, interpretation.
In the final portion of the program, several Colby students stepped forward to guide the group through additional works on display, offering their own takes and acting as moderators for a group discussion. The session then ended with a shared meal in the museum’s lobby, a fitting conclusion for a program rooted in community and conversation.
~ Sophia Ikiri `29
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How Artificial Intelligence is Redefining Art
We unavoidably and inarguably live in an increasingly digital age. This statement is so common, so accepted, that it is a platitude. But it is true. The world we live in is changing, metamorphosing into an evermore modern, efficient, and automated system. With this comes inevitable fears. Are we straying too far from unaided, independent, and distinctive work? In other words, are we still human enough? Are we trading ethics for productivity? Or, are we luddites — too involved in our own consternation, too pessimistic, and too technophobic to acknowledge that life is evolving, and that not all evolution is bad?
Artificial intelligence is the newest consequence of our rapidly mechanized society. Its introduction spawned many of the same conversations, worries, and enthusiasms as inventions like the computer, the internet, and the smartphone. It’s precisely this reason that many welcomed AI. Civilization didn’t end when the world wide web was introduced, so how would AI be any different?
Nevertheless, ethical concerns, anxieties over job loss, privacy questions, and the degradation of individual thinking and expressionism, are all real concerns — ones which cannot be assuaged by aphorisms like, “it all worked out in the past.” For these reasons, institutions are trying to correct early for AI-related issues moving forward. At Colby, AI is integrated in the classroom across disciplines and more directly through centers like the Davis Institute for Artificial Intelligence. Since AI is an inescapable part of the future, the College looks to prepare students for an unpreventable technological fate, one where graduates can adapt to, maneuver, and excel in the unprecedented.
But, in the era of AI, we should require more of ourselves than simply gaming the system to ensure our own monetary success. We are also required to consider the implications of interacting with AI, and more specifically, whether our use or proponency of AI is moral. This is a complicated issue, one without a clear answer.
AI is a large umbrella which, with technological reforms, has progressed to impact many facets of current life. My conversations with Colby students focused in particular on one of these facets: AI’s influence on the arts. I was interested in student’s opinions regarding whether AI art was really art; how large language models factored into their own projects; if technology weakened the creative expressionism intrinsic to art; and if “art” was defined as something solely human-created or could instead be a product made by real and digital designers.
Ben Bognon `29 and Sailor Perry `29 are artists. Bognon is currently taking art classes in his first semester at Colby, while Perry hopes to increase her involvement in the arts in the near future. Both Bognon and Perry define art as a form of expression, which begs the question, is an AI-generated piece considered art if it evokes an emotion or articulates a particular opinion?
Bognon says art doesn’t have to be “human-made.” Similarly, he thinks using AI for inspiration is not necessarily a sign of inauthenticity, but rather a productivity tool. “You can’t coin AI as your own. But when writing an essay, AI can help with ideas, structure, and reformatting. As soon as you make AI write something for you, it’s not your work. You are taking credit for something that is not your own. But it can help you get there.” To Bognon, the same applies to art. AI is a device, and it should be used. People didn’t ditch using calculators for long division simply because they aren’t computing the problems themselves.
By contrast, Perry responded to the question of whether AI could have a role in the arts with a resolute “no,” explaining, “AI art is not really art.” Her attitude is a byproduct of growing resentment towards LLMs that “are taking away a lot of jobs… That goes for music, writing, teacher’s positions, everything,” she says. Even if AI was capable of producing art that stimulated a reaction, to Perry, AI art shouldn’t outcompete the talents of human artists.
Bognon sees AI pragmatically. It’s not that allocating fair credit, promoting the work of good artists, and continuing human-made outlets of creative expression aren’t important problems. The worries Perry has are valid and real. But Bognon doesn’t see an alternative. He has accepted the new reality. “In general, AI is taking over and replacing a lot of people’s jobs. But at the same time, it’s creating jobs for people.” As for what happens to these new positions when AI progresses to the point of writing its own code, Bognon remains unsure. He says that’s a topic for the future. But, is this a question we can afford to delay answering?
~ Maya Corrie `29
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The Dwellers of Davis
Looming in the southeast corner of campus, daunting and dark, sits the Davis Science Center. The building referred to as ‘Davis’ is home to the college’s math and computer science departments, two of the most rigorous majors at the college. Many of the students pursuing these majors dwell in Davis, taking advantage of the dozens of computers and ceiling length chalkboards, which they decorate with complex math problems that would make the average human head explode. There are, no doubt, some people who camp out in Davis for long days and nights, torturing themselves with code and arithmetic. For some students, their time spent in Davis has starved them of human interaction outside of the building. As a result, tight bonds have been formed amongst those who squat in the science center, hence why I’ve chosen to call them ‘the dwellers of Davis.’
I visited Davis on a gloomy Monday, before a busy week of exams in many math classes. Ava Wu `28 was the first person I ran into. She was frantically studying vector calculus in preparation for her exam on Tuesday. When asked how she was feeling, she momentarily glanced away from the chalkboard, replied “stressed,” and promptly turned back around. I pointed out the lack of windows in the building to which she replied “the lack of natural light helps you lock in.”
Curious as to why a student would devote so much of their time and energy to a concept as abstract as math, in as daunting a building as Davis, I asked math major Tim Gatto `28. He said, “Math is like lots of little puzzles, and puzzles are fun!” Wu agreed, “puzzles are fun.” Robbie Bennett `27, a computer science major, explained that he pursued computer science because it was “fascinating,” and enjoyed Davis’s vending machines. Ruby Dwyer `28, a recent math major, was at the large table central to the second floor, where various math students sat studying. She was preparing for the same test as Wu; “The nice thing about Davis is knowing you’re going to find someone in your class who is doing math that can help you.”
Wu and Dwyer both excitedly called over Pedro Alves `26, a student they claimed was “a Davis legend.”Alves is a math and physics major, with a minor in computer science. When asked how much time he spends daily in Davis, he mumbled “I spend more time here than I spend in my room,” calculating approximately 10 hours a day. His favorite thing about Davis, other than the chalkboards, was the social environment: “From a math standpoint this is a great place to collaborate. It is a social place for math people, and math is a social subject.” Michael Tenkorang `26, a computer science and math major, remarked that he also spends 8 hours a day in Davis. His favorite thing about the building is simply, “the boards!”
Walking by, one math student explained that she enjoyed the Davis atmosphere because “you feel the pressure to do the work.” “We jokingly say Davis is our home because we spend a lot of time here,” her friend chimed in. The student then said, “It’s a borderline prison.” Dwyer `28, sitting nearby, then said “so, by transitive property, your home is a prison?” to which everyone in the room laughed. I didn’t get it.
Unsure if they were joking, I followed up with Luke Phytila `28, a math sciences and computer science major, who I asked earlier to describe Davis in one sentence. He admitted, “I don’t know, I was thinking about math too much.”
The chalkboards surrounding me in Davis were covered in algebra, art, chemistry, calculus, and even quotes from Colombian writer, Garcia Marquez. These chalkboards truly reflected the liberal arts education that Colby College preaches. One person didn’t write all these things, yet knowing students, like me, had the capacity to solve advanced math and chemistry problems, draw beautiful pictures, and study the impactful quotes on the boards was an unexpected comfort of the building.
~ Molly Garvey `28
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All Eyes On Sudan
Trigger Warning: This article discusses mass killing and sexual assault. I debated what topic I wanted to write about for my article this week. I considered doing one on the ongoing Serbian protests, but my colleague Cristina Panaguta did a wonderful job with her column in last week’s edition. I was about to do a summary of the Russia-Ukraine war, but right before I started writing, breaking news of the Sudanese humanitarian crisis hit. The Humanitarian Research Lab at Yale’s School of Public Health published satellite images that provided evidence of mass killings outside the former Children’s Hospital in the east of El-Fasher, North Darfur. I was horrified at the evidence and slightly ashamed that Sudan’s civil war wasn’t something I have been keeping up to date on, and neither has Western media. Due to the fact that over 150,000 people have died and over 12 million have fled their homes, Sudan needs more coverage.
Sudan has an unfortunate history with violence. After it gained independence in 1956, the country has experienced 20 military coup attempts, the most of any African nation.
The focus of the most recent atrocities has been in Sudan’s western Darfur region. This area has experienced prolonged instability and social strife, in large part due to ethnic tensions and disputes over land and water. In 2003, this boiled over with a rebellion against the central government, led by then President Omar al-Basir. The resulting war in Darfur was marked by widespread state-sponsored acts of violence that left 300,000 dead and 2.7 million displaced. This is considered one of the deadliest conflicts since World War II. Although Western states condemned these actions, their response was limited and divided. For example, signatories of the International Criminal Court did not honor the ICC’s warrant of arrest for al-Bashir. One of the most important consequences from the 2003 conflict was al-Bashir’s reliance on the Janjaweed — a collection of Sudanese Arab militias led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (more commonly referred to as Hemedti) — for support. This group would later be the foundation for the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Bashir passed a new law that gave Hemedti gold mines in exchange for RSF protection of the president. This position also allowed the RSF to develop a working relationship with the Russian private military outfit Wagner Group, who are infamous for their ineffectiveness and human rights misconduct in Africa and Ukraine.
Despite the RSF’s tight control, domestic protests led the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) to perform a coup d’état in April 2019. Protests extended from anti-al-Bashir to pro-civilian rule, which subsequently saw both groups perpetuate a massacre of over 100 protesters and the raping of dozens of people. A civilian-military joint government was established in August 2019, thanks to international pressure, but this was short lived, as a coup in 2021 led by the RSF and SAF restored military dominance over the government. However, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan — head of the SAF and the president of Sudan — and Hemedti could not come to an agreement on the power dynamics of an integrated SAF–RSF force. By April 2023, the most recent civil war that has seen what the UN describes as “one of the worst humanitarian crises of the 21st century” broke out, leading us to the events of recent weeks.
In addition, this conflict has involved regional actors. Amnesty International has reported that China, Russia, Turkey, Yemen, the UAE, Egypt and Serbia have been sending weapons to the RSF. The UAE and Saudi Arabia specifically have been known for their support of the Arab-dominated RSF and their policy of marginalizing ethnic minorities for a stable government. Others, like the United Kingdom and Ukraine, have used this conflict as a proxy, with the former trying to build better relations with the UAE by facilitating weapons transfer and the latter by sending special forces to combat the Wagner Group and its allies.
Why is this issue not as prominent in our minds as Palestine? This is not a critique of the conflict in Gaza. However, I suspect many reasons for the lack of coverage of Sudan. One of them is the identity of the belligerent. Israel is a controversial topic, but they have a strong democratic institution and are widely seen as a ‘Western’ nation. By contrast, Sudan’s domestic politics has been dominated by its military. Secondly, race may be a factor. The African continent has historically been underreported by mainstream media, and only one off ‘significant’ events tend to make the front page. Finally, foreign interests in the region dictate that more news sources do not reach out. Nations do not want the instability of the region to spread to their own territories, and foreign governments are willing to back whoever can offer stability in the region, regardless of their human rights standard. Sudan is also rich in natural resources like oil and gold, which have already been prime targets for resource extractions, as seen by the Wagner Group’s involvement. Sudan also has strategic access to the Horn of Africa, which many nations want more influence over.
In a climate where it seems that individual voices are losing out to strategic interests, we sometimes feel powerless. But that’s not the case. We’ve seen people stand up and win (see my last article on youth movements around the world). Social media activism, combined with concrete action, has provided results.
This is not a fairy tale. There are no good sides here. However, we must try to spare those caught up in the conflict — defend the defenseless, protect the vulnerable. Sudan should not be exploited in the global geostrategic game. The people deserve better. All those suffering deserve better.
~ Roy Li `28
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“One Meal, One Neighbor, One Act of Kindness at a Time”: Selah Tea Cafe’s $10 Meal Tokens
On October 30, 2025, Selah Tea Cafe announced on their Facebook page that they are running a $10 Meal Token program. The flyer reads, “Buy a $10 Meal Token — Selah Tea Cafe will match it, meal for meal. Pay it forward: one meal, one neighbor, one act of kindness at a time.”
By buying a $10 Meal Token, you are in turn helping pay for a meal for someone in need. The program was started during the ongoing government shutdown, which impacted funding for Supplement Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. SNAP provides food benefits to low-income families for their grocery budget so they can afford nutritious food. With this program on pause as of November 9, those affected can simply show their SNAP or Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card at Selah’s checkout to redeem a meal token, which provides one menu item of each guest’s choosing per visit.
This is not the first time Selah Tea Cafe has stepped up to help the community. Bobby McGee, who owns Selah Tea Cafe with his wife, Rachel McGee, said, “One time [in Waterville] we all lost electricity, so people were down with power during the snowstorm. We did a donation only day — whatever you could pay. They paid a dollar, great. They paid nothing, great. If they could pay $20 bucks for a cup of coffee, great. It didn’t matter to us.”
McGee further said, “It’s a burden that we can’t carry on our own, so we try to partner with those who might have a little bit extra to help. Then we are the means to funnel and be the bridge between those who need and those who have. Usually works out. We don’t usually make any money off of it, but that’s not the point.”
After his wife got texts from friends asking if Selah Tea Cafe was going to do anything with SNAP funding paused, McGee said, “That’s a great question. Let us think about it.”
They then began brainstorming the easiest way to get food to people. They considered putting food packages together “but didn’t want stuff to go bad.”
Ultimately, McGee said they decided doing meal tokens would be the easiest way to provide accessible food: “I thought this would be the easiest way. They just have a meal token, people can pay for it, then we will match it, and then they come in and they can get food. They have their family, they feel normal.”
McGee also said “We see a few people [using the tokens] every day,” demonstrating how the meal token program has been running well.
When asked about what he enjoys about running a business in downtown Waterville, he said, “That’s an easy one. I just like helping people. Whether it is getting people jobs or getting people to leave with food.”
He went on to say how they are able to continue to give back to the community through donations: “We get tons of donations. Every week we are given donations whether from events or charities and raffles and things so we can be a place where we can help people.”
While SNAP benefits are said to be issued starting November 10, 2025, this meal token program shows Selah’s commitment to helping the community when they can. Plus, members of the community stepping up to donate demonstrates the Waterville community’s resilience during difficult times. Whether by donating (when able) to Selah Tea Cafe’s program, possible future donations the cafe may run, or to other donations run by other small businesses in the area, one meal at a time we can help members of the community.
~ Haley Hegarty `28
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Women’s Soccer’s Loss Against Tufts Led To Many Life Lessons
While losing is never pleasant, it often teaches lessons that ultimately lead to more success in the future. Following their loss to Tufts University in the NESCAC semifinals on Saturday, November 8, the Colby women’s soccer team recognizes their strengths and feels confident in their ability to attack their weaknesses.
About 10 minutes in, the Tufts University Jumbos scored, and they found further success a couple of minutes later. Soon after, Abigail Jarvi `27 scored for the Mules, bringing the score up to 1-2, which lasted through halftime. Minutes after resuming play, Ella Caraluzzi `28 scored, tying the game until Tufts scored a third time, ultimately winning the game and getting set to play in the NESCAC finals on Sunday, November 9, against Williams College. Williams won with a score of 1-0.
Back in Waterville, days before the game even took place, Colby’s team, including Kaya Singh `29, knew that it would not be easy and worked to prepare ahead of time. “Tufts is an amazing team, so I think for us, [a challenge was] playing with that chip on our shoulder, knowing who we [were] going against, and [wanting to prove] something to everyone. So I think it [was] more of an internal challenge,” Singh said. “I mean, obviously there’s nerves…[but] I wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else.”
Once the group was out on the field, the players were able to see their training in practice, and to then further dissect the team’s overall strengths and weaknesses. “We move the ball really well. There’s no selfishness on the field, and we all trust each other, so we all feel comfortable playing it to each other,” Singh said. “There’s just positivity, everyone’s rooting for everybody, and just knowing that you have everyone behind you gives you the extra confidence to take that shot or take that player one on one, or make that hard pass.”
First-year Maya Ouramdane `29 noticed this sense of team-wide confidence and resilience on Saturday. “When Tufts scored two goals, I think 20 minutes into the first half, they were pretty happy because they thought it was over…But [everyone] really put their body on the line, doing it all game and never stopped breaking,” Ouramdane said.
Singh agrees, noting how this has led to team-wide improvement that could be seen, even within the season itself. “Each practice, everybody comes and they give it 100% of what they have. You could see the growth week by week,” Singh said.
Despite the group’s strong performance, they drove back to Colby on Sunday with new ideas on how they can improve over the next couple of months. “We learned that no matter what team we have in front of us, and no matter how high they’re ranked, it all comes down to who believes more and who wants it more,” Ouramdane said. “Because at this point, for semifinals, finals, or [a] national tournament, every team has the ability to beat every team. It really doesn’t matter what strength each team has, or what strength we have, it is really much more in the head. It’s more than just their body on the line.”
Keeping these lessons in mind, the athletes are looking forward to playing in the upcoming NCAA tournament. “Last year, we made it far and we lost to the team that ended up winning the whole tournament. So I think our goal this year is to continue forward and hopefully win the tournament,” Singh said.
After the NCAA’s completion, the team will begin to focus on physical training, such as lifting in the gym, with their practices being led by team captains.
~ Isabella Boggs `29
December 8, 2025
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