Dear Reader,
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Tides... Ashes... Roots... Breathe. The four MiNT Magazines lived peacefully until the coronavirus arrived....
We realized in the midst of creating our Ashes issue that we had represented two of the elements, and we very much wanted to continue the trend. The allusion that began this letter to you has been two years in the making.
Coming into this semester wanting to represent air, we had no idea how fitting our theme would be. Initially, Breathe alluded to the asbestos found in Milne Library. That was the scandal that marked the beginning of this semester, and we thought it would continue to be the most pressing concern for the next five years. We were so wrong.
Now Breathe is an unfortunate reference to the respiratory illness that has disrupted our semester and the world: COVID-19. Although the dreaded coronavirus and the quarantine that accompanied it is hardly represented within these pages—our submission deadline was the day Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that all SUNY schools would close for the rest of the semester—it also hangs over this magazine’s creation. We were able to adjust and carry on, though we had to trade our usual lively in-person meetings for the muted glow of our computer screens where we met over video chat. Additionally, this will be the first issue of MiNT Magazine to be published solely online. We also lack our much-loved launch party, where we celebrate our hard work. We’re sad we can’t honor our authors and artists, but we’ll have to do something in the fall to make up for it.
I’m very interested to see how COVID-19 will affect our small club and the world at large in the next few years. But until then, we can’t do much more than celebrate how life carries on. So, breathe, dear reader. We’ll see you when this is all over.
Lara Mangino, Editor-in-Chief
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