I’ve never really been into philosophy, but there is one quote that I try to live by: “Character is higher than intellect; a great soul will be strong to live as well as think.”

In mine and Ralph Waldo Emerson’s opinions, it doesn’t really matter how you do in a particular class that determines how intelligent you are, or if you know what is going on in Libya or how many people died in the tornadoes in Alabama. I am not trying to be insensitive, but what I try to see in people are the thousands of moral fibers woven together that make up a person’s spirit.

I walked into The Massachusetts Daily Collegian four years ago, a student from out-of-state who knew almost no one, who was eager to become a part of something while also trying to meet new people and see if I was really interested in the field of journalism. I can’t even tell you how many articles I have written for this paper, or how many hours I have logged down in this windowless basement in the Campus Center.

But what I can tell you is that I feel like while I have learned things that I will hopefully take with me in the “real world,” I believe that I have become a better person from the people I have worked with and the things that I have done. I have learned how to be part of a team. I apologize for not sparing you a cliché about sports, since I have been the section editor for the past year.

Working at a newspaper that prints 10,000 copies everyday takes a lot of organization and a lot of cooperation from a lot of different personalities. If you don’t believe me, come check it out. But that’s not a bad thing. I feel like its imperative for people to be different as long as they see a common goal that they all want to accomplish. I have also learned that above all, being a person that can communicate with others and that can give positive reinforcement in a leadership role will warrant positive results as well as more respect.

Face it: people don’t like being told that they suck. Even if they do suck, having a sense of humor about it and building people back up will get you better results. While most of my close friends were not involved with the Collegian, I must say that I have met some pretty interesting people who have opened my eyes to a lot of different perspectives about a ton of different issues.

I’m not really sure if I want to go into journalism, but I know that my time spent at the Collegian has been well worth it. I also know that the relationships I have made with teachers, co-workers and my staff have been beneficial not only on a professional level, but on a personal one.
I want to thank everyone involved with The Collegian, the athletes and the coaches and the media relations people who I have had the pleasure with working with and getting to know, along with my family, friends, classmates and roommates from Keno. You all mean the world to me.

Lastly, I want to thank the people who pick up the paper and actually read it. I hardly believe that I am more intelligent then the average human being. But what I can say is that I value mine as well as other people’s character above all else, and hope that it has become more well-built these past four years.

David Brinch was The Collegian’s Sports Editor. He can be reached at [email protected].