VOLUME 3, ISSUE 2
SUMMER 2021
FROM THE EDITOR
October 18, 2021
Dear Readers and Friends,
As I sit in Vondy as a first semester senior and look out the glass windows at Duke’s gothic stone buildings, I can’t help but feel an intense nostalgia. In my short time at Duke, the world has completely changed. It’s been nearly two years since I have sat here unmasked and ignorant to the impending doom that is and was the Covid-19 Pandemic. Walking on an isolated campus my junior year, I felt like a visitor. Now, I feel a bit of culture shock, overwhelmed by the masses of students I no longer recognize, whose faces I cannot completely see. Just lots and lots of eyes.
The end of my college experience is very near, but I – and I think I can speak for many of my Class of 2022 peers when I say this – don’t feel ready. I doubt anyone is ever ready to graduate and enter the “real world,” but with a year and a half of Covid, we lost some time. I have to admit that this issue of Juhood is overdue, for a variety of reasons and setbacks that always come with the publication process, but also, mostly as a result of my procrastination. Juhood has been a defining part of my college experience, and, truthfully, I wasn’t ready to let it go.
Yet, it’s funny how things in life always seem to have a way of coming full circle. Last month, Jake and Bryan, two of Juhood’s founders, officially graduated in the Class of 2020 commencement. Their senior year had ended like an unfinished sentence, abruptly and unexpectedly. For a brief weekend at Duke, it seemed as if it was time to pick up where we left off, and then suddenly, 2020 was officially over. It feels like just yesterday I was walking into my first Juhood meeting, Phoebe, Bryan, Jake, and Josh excited and anxious to present the organization they had been putting together for many months. I was an overly determined and enthusiastic freshman, thrilled to join the group. Little did I know that Juhood would eventually feel like home.
Now, I look back at my time on Juhood with joy and gratitude. I’m thankful for the creative outlet, the incredible platform, and the opportunity it has given me to connect with scholars, artists, and activists invested in the Middle East across the globe. But most of all, I’m thankful for the people: Phoebe, Juhood’s first Editor in Chief, artistic icon, and my inspiration to join the team. Bryan, the man with the vision, the brains behind the operation, and our number one supporter. Grayson, mother of the magazine and the giggliest ball of joy. Gianna, our sanity, organizational expert, and loyal helping hand. Hadeel, our kind-hearted leader, the glue that held us together, my ‘bookend’. And Jake, my Juhood mentor, teacher of invaluable life lessons, ready listener, and dear friend. Thank you for making Juhood a community I will never forget.
So now – Jasper, Rebecca, Rose, Manon, Cate, and Emily – we hand it over to you. Hadeel, Grayson, Gianna, and I are so excited to see what you and the new team members of Juhood create this upcoming year. We know it’s going to be wonderful.
-Hannah
