Passing on the Torch

My Final Words for the SWR

M. D. Kwak

IT’S THE END. This edition of the Blue and White Insight will be the last from the 2023-24 team.

First some thank yous: The SWR is a tremendous publication and an enormous amount goes into it every week from many people behind the scenes including the Community Engagement Team. Thank you to Mrs Reid and Ms Thurgood for your tireless work as MICs for the student articles. Ms Thurgood, you have been so quick and capable, stepping into your new role and providing us with your support and advice. Next, a huge shout out to the Graphics Editors, Ramon Zhang and Jamie D’Arcy. You guys have put in as much if not more into the student articles in making sure it is designed and formatted to such a high standard every week. Ramon – your covers are simply works of art and some of the best of any magazine I’ve seen. I am so thankful for your hard work and friendship over the past year. Jamie – your work ethic and attention to detail have been invaluable. Your humour and company have made my journey so much more worth it. To the whole Senior Committee: Callum, Angus, Teeg, Tellis, Daniel, Alan, Orlando, Chris Lovell, Chris Mathur, Hamish, TK, Max, Liam, Josh, Hector, Charlie and Hugh,  your articles have been so so funny, intelligent and provoking to read – your dedication and writing capabilities are what define the Record. Thank you for being a group of lads who shared my love for writing, cared for the Record as much as I did and created a supportive and caring community. Finally, Brad. When I think back to the highs and lows of our tenure, it hasn’t always been easy, but I could not have asked for a better partner and friend to weather it out with. I can always count on you to be mature, dedicated and hilarious. It’s been so much fun and I’m incredibly grateful for you. 

Congratulations and good luck to the incoming Editor and Secretary for 2024-25: Ethan Nam and Callum Zhu. I have the greatest trust in you to lead the student section of the SWR and bring it to even greater heights. Have fun, stay committed but crucially, always remember and protect the cornerstone that holds together the Record – a paper by the boys and for the boys. Fostering student expression, thought and passion for writing should be your primary concern. In my view, unlike various other publications produced by the school, the Blue and White Insight is an internally produced and consumed snapshot of the boys and their thoughts. Authenticity and genuineness should come before a facade of perfection; free and healthy discourse, disagreement and opinions should come before curating an image for the media or broader public.

For me, the biggest value of this role is that it has forced me to sit down every week and just think. To take a couple hours, reflecting on my beliefs about the world, crystallising my idiosyncratic observations and distilling my thoughts on a blank piece of paper has been my ironic source of relief amidst the tumult of my final year. I’ve written works I hold the greatest pride for and some that I am already beginning to cringe at. I’ve tried my hand in comedy, satire, strongly-worded polemics, discursive and even poetry. In my view, experimentation – the freedom to try, fail and improve across different mediums, styles and content – should be encouraged and developed, rather than censored or seen as an unnecessary risk. It is truly the process that has fulfilled me the most, deepened my understanding of the world and my own self, and allowed me to convey that to others. So for the final time, thank you to you guys, the readers, for your support and interest in the Record. I hope that this newspaper has provided you with some value and inspired you to think, read and write about the world. 

Vitai Lampada Tradunt