Ariel Rabinovich:

In March of my sophomore year, I was reviewing my course registration with my advisor, Mr. Halperin, and I genuinely stopped at one point to ask, “But wait, is this going to help me in my career?” He just laughed and responded, “I don’t even know what I want to do with my career right now.” I ended up registering for Journalism I, and spent my junior year chasing down kids in the alcoves to investigate the school’s gym culture and driving to Canton to talk with Bay State chicken owners. After every side quest and interview, I became more in touch with a far more curious version of myself. I realized that everyone deep down has a story they’ve been itching to tell, and I found value in getting to hear and broadcast them. To whoever is reading this right now, I ask that you go through your contacts right now, call someone you haven’t seen in over a year, and ask them what they’ve been up to. There is no such thing as wasted time in the pursuit of a story. They are a gift to tell and a privilege to listen to.

Blakeny Johnston:

In AC 101, a group of juniors and seniors meets twice a week for Journalism class. When I walk through the glass doors of that room, I am usually tired and drained from the school day. When I walk out those doors 70 minutes later, my face hurts from smiling too much. Over the past two years, I have had the great privilege of being a staff writer for The Nobleman. What an experience it has been to be a part of a completely student-run class focused solely on producing a tangible work product once a month. It is truly unlike any environment I have ever been a part of and likely will ever be in again. Being a member of The Nobleman has taught me so much about writing, language, and collaboration, about Nobles as an institution and the individuals that make it such a unique place, and even about myself. It’s hard to choose just one story, meme, or announcement that stood out most to me, but what I can say for certain is that I’ve loved exploring every corner of Nobles and getting to know people and places I never would have encountered otherwise. Thank you to everyone who opened up to me and entrusted me with telling their stories — a profound responsibility and privilege. To underclassmen considering applying, I say DO IT! 100% Although I was often pushed outside of my comfort zone, I am all the better writer, communicator, and human for each challenging situation. So, a huge thank you to Nobles and The Nobleman for the best two years I could have asked for, and for always leaving me with a smile on my face.

Chris Kan:

In the midst of Greece’s conquest of Italy, the royal advisor Cineas asked King Pyrrhus, “After taking Italy, what are we to do?” The king responded, “Then we will take Sicily.” “Will our expedition stop with Sicily?” The king replied, “No, we will then take Libya, Carthage, and Agathocles!” “What will we do after everything is subject to us?” The king said confidently, “Then we will finally rest.” “But what stands in the way of our resting now? You are a great king with every privilege; why go through all this trouble?” The great king had no answer.

It’s in moments like these — graduation, the end of a chapter — where one is forced to consider Cineas’ endless chain of “And then what?” questions. In the throes of AP tests and sports tournaments, we direct all of our energy towards our conquests, convinced that accomplishing these goals will somehow bring us true happiness. Yet, when we do accomplish these goals, that shiny object of our desire loses its luster, and we are off to pursue the next.

When I reflect on everything that Nobles has given me, the very least important things on this list are all of the achievements I’ve chased and earned over the past six years. I have found infinitely more joy in moments of learning, in time spent with teams and the Editorial Board, and in sharing my thoughts with the community than in any fleeting moment of triumph. In this final message to the school, I urge you to place less weight on the success of your expeditions, because even if Pyrrhus conquered the world, he would still find himself asking, “Now what?”

Ekene Madu:

Reflecting on my time at Nobles, specifically my senior year, I’m so happy I decided to put myself in uncomfortable, new spaces, often seeking to grow. Looking back upon all my favorite memories, like joining the Nobles Wrestling team, joining Imani, and applying for The Nobleman. Though I started not knowing what I was doing, I found comfort in the new people I met and the new skills I developed. Nobles has been the hardest but most rewarding experience of my life, and I will truly appreciate it for the rest of my life. But I don’t think I would have been able to do it without some great people by my side so I want to give a special shoutout to Ms. Oates for always supporting me and having my back, I love you always, to Dr. Sarpy for always having a listening ear and encouraging me, to all of the Achieve staff for always being a pillar of support for me, and a special thank you to Nobles Wrestling because it allowed me to push me in a way I have never experienced before. It’s been great! Thank you, Nobles.

Harrison Abber:

When I first applied for The Nobleman in my sophomore spring, I was an amateur photographer, ambitious to use my skills for something larger than just my own work. Joining the staff meant joining a team and becoming an integral part of what makes this paper so special in our community.

The first few months were a challenge; I never had to take photos on a schedule before, and getting comfortable with how the Nobleman cameras worked was a bit of a learning curve. Still, I found that going out and taking photos of so many different aspects of campus life pushed me to engage with people and places I had never been exposed to before.

Over the past two years, I’ve gotten to hone my skills far beyond what I thought I was capable of, while enjoying a unique community around me. But specifically, I’ve loved getting to work with the multimedia staff this year. We’ve grown so close as a team, whether through laughing while we make photo assignments, problem-solving ways to get photos, or working together to film a video. I’ll always be so proud of us.

Thank you, Nobleman, for teaching me new skills, pushing me to think outside the box, and giving me the chance to showcase our amazing community with my photography.

James Hazen:

I was scrolling through my camera roll recently, on a bus headed towards Worcester and trying to distract myself from an upcoming race, when I stumbled upon an absolute gem sandwiched between a picture of my cousins and a clip from an Indiana Jones parody my brother and I had been working on. The date of the photo, clearly indicated in looping handwriting in its top right corner, was September 18, 2020. It was an Adobe scan of a letter I had written for my seventh-grade science class directly after my first week at Nobles. I will spare readers (if there are any) the minutiae of my detailed and somewhat depressing description of that first week (not including orientation, which I take pains to point out), but I will share one sentence I found pertinent. “As I mentioned in the first paragraph, I would really like to make friends with someone,” James Hazen (then Class VI, soon to be N ’26) said. Well, past James, as you so kindly signed off the letter, I think we did it. Unfortunately, I can claim none of the credit. For the past six years of my life, I have been surrounded by some of the most supportive, caring, thoughtful, and genuine people I have ever met. For the past six years of my life, I’ve found a home in a place that I didn’t know I’d fit into. There are teachers I have never had a single class with, yet they still stop me in the halls to check in. My coaches’ core principles and core values have osmosed into my conscious and subconscious, and I don’t know who I’d be without them. And my friends, as I’m sure 7th-grade James would be happy to hear, well, I couldn’t ask for a better group to spend these stomach-butterflying, water-slapping, heart-racing, rollercoaster years we called high school together.

Mariame Diagana:

As I prepare to graduate, I feel so grateful to reflect on my past four years here. I was nervous as an incoming Class IV student who went to school with the same people for 10 years. Walking in, however, I immediately felt the sense of community that Nobles has harnessed, and I knew I would find my people here with just a little bit of time and patience. Man, was I right! I have met friends and faculty members here who have helped me grow exponentially, both academically and personally. And I can only thank Nobles and the people I met here for helping me unlock my potential. 

What I have also learned from Nobles is to try new things. I have been on four EXCEL trips, making lasting relationships along the way. I’ve led clubs, worked for The Nobleman, created resolutions at BOSMUN, and auditioned for the musical in my senior year, even though I knew nothing about productions. These are the reasons why Nobles is unlike any other institution, and I am so blessed to have had the opportunity to attend. 

To younger students: try everything. Go to that club that you’ve been thinking about, book assembly time, go on an EXCEL trip, and talk to a new face. When I was told four years ago that my time here would fly by, I didn’t take it seriously, but I am now realizing it did. I am happy with what I have done here, but there will always be more areas of this community to explore. 

To conclude, thank you, Nobles, for helping me become confident in myself and in what I believe in, and I will dearly miss this community. Go Dawgs!

Natalia Calvillo:

Serving as a writer, layout staff member, layout editor, and multimedia editor of The Nobleman for the last two years fills me with an immense sense of honor. With each class period, where I listened to editors talk about their naval adventures, reveled in Mr. Polebaum’s iconic tales during layout weekend, and had 15-minute laughing sessions in the glass room after our first layout bootcamp, I grew closer to those who walked before me.

To those who walk beside me, the writers, multimedia staff, and layout staff, along with the 115 Editorial Board, my Nobles experience truly would not be the same without you all. Thank you, Ariel, for constantly taking flight, Teja yelling at him to “just stop talking,” Chris giggling, James appearing helplessly confused, and Ruby, for being an incredible partner in our many rants and a wonderful friend. Thank you, Dr. Isvan, Mr. Polebaum, and Ms. Neal, for keeping us in check and, occasionally, adding to the same chaos whose absurdity we look back on and laugh fondly. 

Lastly, to those who walk after me: treasure this experience. As Mr. Bussey used to say, if you find lillipads of happiness, cling onto them. You will come to recognize that your investment in this paper has a way of finding its way back to you. Each derailed brainstorm and new story you come across will, eventually, be added to your own personal stockpile of Nobleman memories. Thank you to everyone who has allowed our paper to bring Nobles closer together, contributed to my Nobleman memory stockpile, and shaped the way I see the world. 

Nathanael Jean-Gilles:

Two years ago, I forgot to apply to The Nobleman because I had put it off until Friday. By putting it off, I mean forgetting The Nobleman even existed until conveniently 11:50 p.m. the day it was due. Thankfully, I applied in my junior year, after countless gCal reminders to hit submit before 11:59 on the due date. I originally applied to boost my college applications, but after writing my first two articles, I realized how much I enjoyed journalism. I always liked analytical writing because it gave me a chance to slow down and refine my more spontaneous analysis from in-class discussions. However, I quickly realized that writing for The Nobleman was more about speeding up, about getting to the point and making my writing more concise so that people would want to read it. I learned how to write to inform while making my prose more fun and interesting

 I also really appreciate the community behind The Nobleman, as it’s really tight-knit. Whether we’re bonding over shared struggles with difficult assignments or doing gift exchanges for the holidays, there’s always something that ties us all together.

Ruby Delinsky:

Just three years ago, as I walked out of the freshman section of Lawrence, refusing to take a paper after assembly, I never could have imagined that The Nobleman would be the highlight of my time here. I did not affiliate myself with the “smart people” who produced this paper, and even resented them a little bit for their status.

The paper has given me both a sense of purpose within the Nobles community and a sense of accomplishment. I have learned how to really listen to others and have been pushed to form relationships with various students and teachers I would never have spoken with outside an interview. I have also learned what it actually means to work hard through countless hours of re-writing and re-interviewing, editing the staff’s work, debating with fellow editors about article assignments, and always being there not just to pump out the paper, but to be a friend to everyone throughout the process. 

The Nobleman is truly a unique space on campus — there is no one else I would have rather laughed and cried with as much as I did with my fellow editors. To any younger students who ever consider applying for the paper, do it. It might be the best decision of your Nobles career, like it was for me.

Ricardo Watkins:

Cramming the past four years of my life into 250 words is like asking a butcher to drive an elephant through a meat grinder. There’s too much meat, and too little a funnel. But I can talk about how these four years have changed me. I went from quivering in my boots at the thought of a cappella-ing in Guitar Ensemble freshman year to being Heath Ledger from Ten Things I Hate About You in front of the entire school. And what pushed me to change, above all else, were the people in my Journalism class. Sure, there were moments where I had to push myself outside of my comfort zone, but nothing like what I did for The Nobleman. It’s a lot of work, more work than any other course I’ve had to take, and my bad case of Senioritis didn’t help with that. But interviewing people, getting to know them even when I had never spoken to them prior, and writing articles about a Fluffy Hair Epidemic that somehow found its way onto Brown’s campus, all made it worth it. If there’s one thing I don’t regret, it’s taking this course; and that’s despite the fact that I would’ve much rather caught an extra couple of hours of sleep than write about the Top 5 Respect Moments at Nobles. Regardless, thank you to my editors, peers, and teachers who all made this possible, and thank you for pushing me to be better.

Rachael Wang:

Eager to put the layout skills I had learned from Cogito and Nobelium to use, I applied for a layout staff position at The Nobleman in my sophomore year. Little did I know that not only would I spend my time pasting text and moving boxes and images, but I would also find myself interviewing people I had never spoken to before and making artwork for the paper with my newly acquired digital art skills.

Throughout my unique journey with The Nobleman, I have had the privilege of working with almost every aspect of the paper. Witnessing ideas come to life in brainstorms, experiencing the process of writing and editing articles, allocating and exchanging image assignments, creating memes, and consolidating every staff member’s hard work into a completed paper during layout weekends have all taught me valuable lessons of collaboration and resilience.

I am incredibly grateful for everyone I’ve worked with during my two years on The Nobleman. I encourage every underclassman to apply to The Nobleman, even if you only read the memes on the backpage and a few satire articles in each edition. It is almost guaranteed that you will talk to somebody new, learn something about Nobles you didn’t know before, and maybe also enjoy yourself in the process.

Teja Hanumolu:

Surrounded by endless sack circles, spikeball games, and sun-tanning sessions, it’s easy to forget where we are. We become intoxicated by the lightness of it all — and perhaps that, in itself, is its own kind of grace. But, throughout my four years at Nobles, slowly and sometimes painfully, I’ve come to realize the fullness of this place. It’s in the deeper connections: the late-night FaceTimes before an Honors Physics test, the table in the Castle that always had room, the teachers who were always willing to respond to an email, no matter how late it was. It’s in the rigor, too: a math teacher who, through seemingly complex proofs, taught me the value of collaborative problem-solving, the Hamlet essay that came back covered with notes in the margins, the Nobleman articles that pushed me to reach new voices. And above everything else, it’s in the unbelievable generosity of it all, the unlimited resources we, as students, get to experience: the afternoon programs, the clubs for every interest of mine, the continuous academic support. As I stand on the precipice of this next chapter in my life, I hope I can continue staying grounded in gratitude. More importantly, though, I hope you do too: look up. Notice where you are. You’re already somewhere worth being grateful for.