“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door. You step into the Road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off too.” – J.R.R. Tolkien (The Lord of the Rings)

That was precisely how I felt when we first launched the Torch website. If you told me back then that we would have a monthly magazine, an Instagram account, and a mobile app, I would have probably laughed at you. When I launched Torch, I was determined to do one thing: to create a platform for students to share their work with others. Along the way, I was lucky enough to receive opportunities to make this project grow and expand in ways I could not have imagined. It was not until now, when I reflect back on this year’s journey, that I realized that Torch transcended being a just a platform; it became a mine of opportunities.

Students would email us with their short stories and poems, their photos and their artwork; members would send in pieces where they expressed their feelings and voiced their thoughts; and it finally occurred to me that Torch gave students the opportunity to inspire and be inspired by each others’ writings, by each others’ art, by each others’ photos. It led them to discover and gain confidence in their talents.  There was not a moment where I felt more pride in what we had accomplished than when our members proudly and excitedly posted about their work on their own social media platforms and shared them with their families. Their happiness was contagious, and having a place where everybody could read their work motivated them to write more and publish more. It was not only the artists, writers, and photographers who benefited from Torch, though. It has given our social media moderator the chance to experience running a public account on social media. Even more interesting, a couple of months back, we were approached by a student who volunteered to help us create a mobile app. To him, Torch was an opportunity to apply and develop his programming skills and create something he could showcase with pride. I truly hope that, over the next years, Torch’s opportunities will grow to include a wider range of talents and skills.

Ironically, no amount of words will be sufficient to convey my gratitude to all the key figures who helped bring Torch to life. To my dearest members and friends, I say, thank you for your endless support and enthusiasm. Your undying passion and dedication for the club are what made it the successful platform it is today. We could make a million websites and print a million magazines, but without your thoughts and your writing masterpieces, they would be nothing but empty, abandoned shells. You never ceased to surprise me with your talents and exceptional writing skills, and I hope you never will. Thank you for putting up with my constant demands, and I truly hope you never, ever, stop writing.

To the future Heads of Torch, Shahd and Jana, I have complete faith in you. I have no doubt that under your guidance, Torch will thrive and become something much larger and much more successful than we could have ever dreamt. It will be tiring, yes, and it will take a lot of time and effort, but I could not think of any two people with more devotion to this club and more determination to make it flourish than you. I pass on the Torch to you with a peaceful mind.

And, finally, to the readers, to the student contributors, to the artists and photographers who read our articles and shared their work with us, you are what keeps our magazine alive. I hope Torch has given you all the opportunity to express your creativity and showcase your talents, and I hope it continues to do so on a much larger scale.

Torch was undoubtedly one of the best things I have ever done in my life, and I will continue to look back on the legacy it has left with pride. I would like to end this piece with a fitting quote from one of my favorite authors. These words are the ones Charles Dickens ended A Tale of Two Cities (the second best-selling novel of all time) with, and are the same ones I would like to end my time as Head of Torch with:

“It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to, than I have ever known.” – Charles Dickens