A Lesson of Prioritizing

By: Vivian Pham, Staff Writer

It was a week prior to my dorm move-in. I was sitting on the floor, surrounded by moving boxes and my possessions scattered across the room. The process of sorting the things to bring for college and the things to donate was probably one of the most painful processes I’ve been through. Everything mattered, at least in my defense. I had no intention in giving away anything, even the decor I’ve been trying to hold onto since middle school. To me, each object linked to a memory or experience that I didn’t have the heart to throw away. So with that in mind, I threw everything that I wouldn’t bring with me to college into several boxes and stacked them up in my closet, ignoring my mom’s complaint and threats that she’d get rid of them sooner or later.

Last summer, I visited home for the first time since moving into my college dorm. As I opened the closet, a few boxes fell off the stack, instantly bringing me back to the previous fall. I quickly unpacked the boxes and thought to myself, “What on earth am I trying to hold onto?” All the little decors, the exam papers from high school, the notebooks, the friendship bracelet from someone I hadn’t seen for ages, etc. All the things that I once claimed as my prized possessions, suddenly turned into a junk of useless garbage. Maybe it was because I no longer feel connected to these objects, maybe because I’ve been constantly moving from place to place that I now only possess fewer and more useful things that I actually use daily, or maybe because of both reasons. I’m not sure.

If there’s only one thing that I learn from all of this, it would surely be the lesson of priority. When I moved into the dorm, my whole life was packed up in two 50lb-checked-bags, a carry-on suitcase, and a backpack. No more, no less. Life is just like these moving processes. There are so many things, so many events happen in the course of 24 hours, but there are only a few that will go with you for the rest of your life. I slowly learned, through these moving processes, what I need to do in a day that’s worth my effort and attention, who I should be caring for, and most importantly, which stuff I should keep or throw away.

Fall Fables and Folklore

By: Austin Price, Staff Writer

Well, it’s that time again, fall. The leaves are changing, candy prices are increasing, Halloween decorations are appearing, and superstitions, fables and folklore spread like wildfire throughout many different cultures and communities. As a lover of all fall-related things, I have collected a menagerie of stories behind some of our most treasured and well-known fall traditions. From the autumn equinox to Halloween night, whispers of scary stories and beloved fables are exchanged, giving us a deeper understanding of this beautiful season and the secrets and rituals, it holds. 

Autumn Equinox

Now, to start as all things do, we go to the beginning. More specifically, the beginning of fall - the autumn equinox. In the Northern Hemisphere, the autumn equinox begins on September 22. During an equinox, the sun crosses what is known as the “celestial equator” which is an imaginary extension of the Earth’s equator line into space. The equinox occurs precisely when the sun’s center passes through this line. The word “equinox” comes from Latin “aequus” meaning equal, and “nox”, night. On the equinox, day and night are equal in length. After the autumnal equinox, days become shorter than nights as the sun continues to rise later and nightfall arrives earlier. 

With the event of the autumn equinox comes the Harvest Moon. The Harvest Moon is the full moon that occurs nearest to the autumnal equinox. The Harvest Moon gets its name from the schedule and labor distribution between farmers as they battled the sun for more time to work in the fields. Typically, the moon rises about an hour later each night, but around the autumn equinox the angle of the Moon’s orbit and the tilt of the Earth line up exactly right and cause the moon to rise only about 20 to 30 minutes later each night for several nights in a row. These extra minutes allowed farmers more time to work in the fields while still arriving home before the frost and chill of the night set in after the sun had set. 

The significance of the autumn equinox is attributed to the Earth’s journeys around the sun. Many different cultures host celebrations and embrace legends around this time. In honor of the autumn equinox, the Mayans built a giant pyramid called Chichen Itza, located in Mexico. On the equinox, it looks as if a snake made of light slithers down the pyramid’s steps. In Peru, at Machu Picchu, an ancient stone monument called Intihuatana meaning “Hitching Post of the Sun" is used as a solar clock to mark the dates of the equinoxes and solstices. 

One of the most popular and recognizable stories about the autumn equinox is that of the Greek myth of the goddess Persephone as she returns to the darkness of the underworld, where she is reunited with her husband, Hades. This story is seen as a symbol for the feeling of autumn when the brilliance of the summer recedes into the more muted tones of September. The story of the matrimony between Persephone and Hades is one of sorrow and reluctance. The Greek myth tells us that Persephone was abducted by Hades, the god of the Underworld. Persephone begged Hades to let her go but he refused. Instead, the two of them made a compromise. Persephone could be free to return to her mother, Demeter, for the long summer days if she stayed with Hades throughout the winter and autumn. Persephone leaves Hades and comes out of the ground to the blooming of flowers and the warm sun every spring equinox and is drawn back to that dark world every autumn equinox. Persephone is both queen of the Underworld, as the wife of Hades, and is associated with the new life that rises with the spring, becoming both life and death simultaneously. 

Changing Colors

Now, here is a bit of a myth buster. For years we were taught that the leaves change colors because of weather conditions and chilly temperatures. However, the leaves change because of the amount of daylight and photosynthesis. As the autumn days shrink, the reduced daylight sends a signal to plants saying it is time to stop gathering energy and get ready for their dormant season, winter. Chlorophyll is a chemical found in leaves that absorbs sunlight and in trade, gives leaves a green color. A corky wall of cells, also known as the “abscission zone,” seals off the vessels that supply the leaf with nutrients and water while blocking the exit vessels and subsequently, traps simple sugars in the leaves. Reduced light, lack of nutrients, and less water causes the trees to start breaking down the chlorophyll and the green color fades, exposing other pigments of color such as yellow, red, orange, and brown. 

A more creative and mythical way of explaining the reasoning behind the changing colors of leaves is found in a Wyandot (Huron) Legend told to generations of children. The story is based on the battle fought by the deer and bear in the sky. The bear was selfish and proud and oftentimes caused trouble for the Animals of the Great Council. When the bear was told that the deer had crossed the Rainbow Bridge into the Sky Land, he was angry and went to confront him. The deer was upset by this altercation and threatened the bear with his long, sharp antlers. The bear was not afraid of the deer and attacked the deer with his claws. The bear and deer fought in the sky until the bear was wounded by the deer’s horns. The wolf, the leader of the Animals of the Great Council, intervened and chased the deer away. As the deer ran, the Blood of the Bear that soaked his antlers dripped onto the Lower World, staining the leaves of the trees red, yellow, and brown. Every year as the leaves change, the Wyandots say that Blood of the Bear has been thrown down from heaven and upon the trees of the Great Island. 

Halloween

Moving further along through the days of fall, we enter the infamous spooky season leading up to Halloween. Many countries throughout the world celebrate Halloween in several ways through rituals and traditions. Halloween's origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain when the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead disappeared. The tradition originated when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts. As the years passed, Halloween and the day after, November 1, evolved into a time to honor all saints, as designated by Pope Gregory III in the eighth century. 

Witches

One of the most infamous legends shaped by the spooky season is that of witches, and the public’s reaction to them. While our current vision of witches is one of women huddling over a cauldron of boiling liquid and cackling beings riding through the sky on brooms wearing pointy hats, witches have a dark history going back to 900 B.C. Early witches were people who practiced witchcraft, using magic spells, and calling upon spirits for help or to bring about change. Most witches were thought to be pagans doing the Devil’s work. Witch hysteria really took hold in Europe during the mid-1400s, where witch hunts became common and most of the accused were executed by burning at the stake or hanging. Nowadays, self-proclaimed witches strive to live a peaceful, tolerant, and balanced life in tune with nature and humanity, healing both themselves and others with herbal remedies and spoken incantations. 

The iconic image of a witch riding a broomstick in the moonlight has its roots in herbal remedies and exploration of fertility assistants. It is predicted the association between witches and brooms may have roots in a pagan fertility ritual, in which rural farmers would leap and dance astride poles, pitchforks or brooms in the light of the full moon to encourage the growth of their crops. This “broomstick dance" became confused with common accounts of witches flying through the night on their way to orgies and other illicit meetings. Broomsticks were also thought to be the perfect vehicles for the special ointments and salves that witches brewed up to give themselves the ability to fly, among other depraved activities.

Vampires

Another well-known figure of Halloween culture is a vampire. Sadly, I am not talking about a sparkly, Robert Pattinson type of vampire (team Edward for life) but instead, a much darker and more sadistic history of bloodletting and blood sucking, making way for countless books and movies. The idea of vampires and vampirism originated in the 19th century, during the rampant spread of tuberculosis, also known as consumption. Because physicians were unable to explain how certain infectious diseases were spread, hopeless villagers believed that some of those who perished from consumption preyed upon their living family members and labeled them as “bacterium with fangs”. To prevent an ongoing vampire attack and the disease from spreading, panicked citizens dug up bodies and performed various rituals, including burning internal organs. 

Haunted Stories

I think it’s safe to say that most of us have memories of ghost stories told in hushed voices, illuminated by flashlights, at 5th grade sleepovers. These stories included broken mirrors, rainy nights, haunted houses, and vengeful ghouls, but the act of storytelling, more specifically, the act of scary storytelling dates to the ancient Roman times. In the first century, they wrote letters recounting ghost stories they claimed to have witnessed including chains rattling, and haunted houses. Many stories teach that the hauntings are because the person was never properly buried, and their return is tied to respecting the dead. As the years went by, stories started to become more menacing in the late 18th century when gothic fiction came into popularity, combining elements of romance with dark, horrific figures. Works of this genre include Frankenstein, Dracula, and even A Christmas Carol. More recent works of horror have focused on current issues such as race and misogyny, and many of them feature the idea that humanity’s greatest fear is death. 

Finally, my personal favorite Halloween origin story, the story of haunted houses. As an avid Disney fan, I have developed an obsession with the infamous attraction, The Haunted Mansion. While this may not be a historically accurate or correct representation of haunted houses history, it certainly is one of the most widespread and recognizable figures in architectural hauntings. However, haunted houses date back to the 1930s, during the heat of the Great Depression. Halloween had become a time for young boys to cause mischief and make some trouble. Hundreds of teenage boys flipped over cars, sawed off telephone poles, removed neighbor’s gates, stole dead bodies, and engaged in other acts of vandalism across the country on Halloween night, dubbing the event as “Black Halloween.” While some parts of the community advocated for the holiday and any related celebrations to be banned, the official response was much more creative. Communities began to organize trick-or-treating, parties, costume parades, and haunted houses to keep the youth busy and out of trouble. The idea of haunted houses starts in the 1800s, with Marie Tussaud’s wax museum in London featured a “Chamber of Horrors” with decapitated figures from the French Revolution. This later evolved in 1915, a British amusement ride manufacturer created an early model haunted house complete with dim lights, shaking floors and demonic screams. Nowadays, there are over 1,200 haunted attractions that charge admission fees as the idea has become commercialized and highly profitable. However, one thing remains the same: haunted houses are still a good place for grim grinning ghosts to socialize. 

As we enter the fall season and approach the spooky holiday, more of these origins and legends gain prominence, and more stories are told. No matter what you believe, no matter how you celebrate, I wish you all Happy Halloween and a wonderful fall season. Stay safe, stay smart, stay spooky. 

Culture Shocked by my Own Culture

By: Vivian Pham, Staff Writer

The chaotic sounds of traffic on a Monday morning, the impatient scooter honks of office workers who was running late, the warm offering voice of the street vendors, etc. all blending in perfectly like a harmonic symphony, vividly engraved in my mind just like how I imagined what a morning in Hanoi would be like. There’s just something incredible about Hanoi and its constant modernization while simultaneously retaining the antiqueness of a long-historical capital of Vietnam. 

It was my first-time visiting Hanoi. I arrived in Hanoi on a humid summer afternoon, almost fainted from the heat and the packed crowd of people in the airport. I quickly made my way out of the airport and got on a cab, heading towards Hanoi’s downtown, where my hotel was located. It was a quick but interesting ride from the airport to the hotel. The closer I got to downtown, the more people I saw, even though it was a Monday. I saw street vendors full of people circling around, patiently waiting for their orders. An insane amount of little plastic stools scattered across what seemed to be the pavement (I barely recognized the pavement since it was extremely narrow). 

Even though I’ve lived in Vietnam for most of my life and knew what things would be like, I couldn’t help but think how astonishingly different things have been in the span of three years (I couldn’t get back to Vietnam for 3 years because of COVID). For instance, while I was hanging out with my friends, we suddenly decided to go to the lakeshore and have a picnic there. Since it was a spontaneous decision, I wondered how we could get any picnic stuff like a picnic mat or snacks/food. To my surprise, my friends took me to a nearby rental store where you can get any gear you need. It was so convenient, and everything was even automatic and self-served, so there wasn’t any staff in the store except for a security guy. Right next to the rental shop was a convenience store, which sold a wide variety of snacks and food. The store even had a section just for instant noodles. After stopping by literally two stores within 15 minutes, we’d had everything we needed for the picnic. 

It also amazed me how the culture in the South differs from the North. I was born and raised in the South, so it was quite an experience for me to visit Hanoi and nearby Northern cities. One time when I was ordering food from a street vendor, it took me a solid minute to explain what a spoon was because apparently there’s a difference for “spoon” in the North. Or when I had Phở, I asked for a small bowl, and they gave me a big bowl because they were confused with me using a different word for “bowl”. Another Northern culture I thought was interesting and also quite controversial was the hierarchical order of a party. Apparently, in a party, the elders (usually the men) would sit in the big table, also known as the upper table, while children and others (usually the women) would sit in a smaller table, also known as the lower table. Obviously, the upper table would get better and more food than the lower table, and they also get served while the lower table had to serve themself. I did a little research into this, and I found out that it resulted from a long history of hierarchy and favoring male over female. This mindset dates back to the monarchical period and still exists in the majority of Northern extended families.

I found it quite fun and fascinating to be shocked by my own culture, something that I thought I would know best since I grew up within it. This trip has taught me a great deal of knowledge and definitely changed my mind set on how important one’s culture and roots are. With that being said, I encourage you to learn more about your own roots and background, and you’re sure to be amazed at how incredible it is.

Messages from the Student Summit

By: Danny Gonzales-Hyde, Staff Writer

On October 5, Regis held a student summit, a meeting between students and administration that had the overarching goal of connecting the two. Despite its initial goals, emotions bubbled over as students shared meaningful questions that we, as a student body, want answers to. During the hour that was set aside for student questions, a lot was brought up, but a few main themes emerged. Questions around the Title IX office were common, as there seemed to be confusion around the way in which they have handled cases in the past. Other offices were also brought up, such as VAVP (Victim Advocacy and Violence Prevention) which has puzzlement surrounding its association with the community, and the CARE (Crisis Assessment Risk Evaluation) office, which deals with disciplinary action. This confusion around accessible resources is yet another recurring theme that persisted throughout the discussion. One such instance of this is how students don't know who the administrators are and what their roles on campus are, which has resulted in a lack of trust between the students and the administration. This also extends into students not knowing what our mental health resources are, with the looming memory of COVID-19 in our peripheral. This resource should be accessible to all students even as COVID-19 begins to wind down, mental health should remain a priority for our campus. 

Other subjects that students brought up, on a number of occasions, were campus security and the lack of support that commuter students receive. In the case of campus security, there were inquiries surrounding how long the response time is when they are called, along with one student calling for them to be armed. These claims came partially as a result of the recent threat on campus from earlier this month when the student body received an alert from campus security that there were potentially two armed individuals on campus. This threat seemed to have really resonated with students, as many had reason to be panicked and were forced to hide in less-than-ideal locations. Commuter students were also present at the summit and made it known that it is difficult for them to be involved and feel a part of campus life. This was brought up with the hope that the administration can figure out some ways to make commuter students feel more at home while on campus. 

Despite all that was mentioned in this article, a few bright spots emerged from the discussion. For one, a line of communication has now been established between the student body and the administration. This will play a vital role in hopefully getting things done that are important to students not only now but in the future. Secondly, it seems that students are fond of the faculty and the relationships that they have built with them inside and outside the classroom. This also came along with high praise for certain administrators, such as Dave Law, who was met with cheers when he was introduced. Nevertheless, student concerns extend beyond just the meeting, and they are curious about what a follow-up could look like and what form it could potentially take as it has much uncertainty surrounding it. Students are now looking forward to seeing the results of the summit and to observing what changes may arise on campus now that their voices have been heard. 

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Editor’s Note: There appeared to be a collective sense of frustration with the current status of Regis’ affairs, and a notable fear and worry of concerns going unheard. To those with unresolved feelings, things to say about what transpired, or those wanting an avenue for your voice to be heard, I encourage you to pursue a couple channels at your disposal. For one, The Highlander always welcomes student submissions, in whatever format you prefer to use, whether that be written, visual, or somewhere in between. Further, RUSGA has made it a priority this year to make everyone’s voice heard, especially our president, Madelaine Johnson. 

Contact Information: 

Editor in Chief, Morgan Jacobus: mjacobus001@regis.edu 

Student Body President, Madelaine Johnson: mjohnson048@regis.edu

The Middle Class’s Enigma: RTD Denver

By: Sandra Vo, Staff Writer

A moth flutters violently against the glass of the lamppost up above, casting its shadow on the sidewalk in front of my feet. Although the time on my phone flashes just shy of 6 o’clock, the sun has long since sent its last farewell rays against the horizon. Snow is normally a gentle feeling, a delicate caress of snowflakes against my cheeks, but tonight, each flake stings my bare hands and burns the tips of my fingers, searing them a bright red.

Even with the daylight becoming a faraway memory with each passing minute, the city remains bustling and lively. Cars sweep past me in throngs, timed succinctly by the stoplight just a few steps down the street. Their headlights illuminate the streets for a couple seconds at a time, like a wildly mismanaged spotlight. In the distance, I can hear threads of Bon Jovi leaking out of the cafe behind me every time the cafe doors fling open. 

I’m not alone in my spot outside however. Around me, a handful of people shuffle around in their spots, trying desperately to fend off the Colorado winter with their respective coats and scarves. One person dons a pair of leather gloves, and I steal an envious glance at them as I warm my hands with the heat of my breath. 

The people here vary in age, gender, and clothing, but we share one thing in common; we are all anchored by the single sign stuck into the grass median that barricades the sidewalk from the street. This bright red sign, covered in various stickers and explicit graffiti, is the only indication that the city of Denver has designated this area as one of the RTD (Regional Transportation District) bus stops.

I check my phone. It’s now 6:05, and if Google Maps has predicted correctly, my bus will arrive in approximately ten minutes. In ten minutes, I could have made the journey back from here to my bedroom by car, but I shove the thought away, knowing that this will only make the wait in the cold worse. 

A cold gust of wind brushes by, and I flinch at how mercilessly it bites at my skin. This is one of the many bus stops scattered throughout Denver without a bus shelter, and while the city designer has tolerated the addition of a bench here, it does nothing to protect us from the frosty Colorado air. The rush of cars on the street feels a little more mocking when I picture how nice it would be to be in a space with an operating heater.

Denver is a city of commuters, and this statement is a cold, daunting reality to the Denver residents without the means of independent transportation. 

But how do you fix this? There is no simple solution to this, especially when it involves both infrastructural and cultural change. To create better public transportation, you need better infrastructure that facilitates the usage of buses and light rails, but for better infrastructure, you need money. And when a city needs to obtain money, they need to reallocate their budget and divert tax dollars away from another project. Colorado’s biggest taxpayers? The middle class.

Now this becomes the issue: few people find pleasure in knowing that they’re paying for a program that doesn’t benefit them. This raises yet another question. If the RTD is public transportation, then why isn’t it being utilized by the general public?

This question has a fairly simple answer. RTD Denver has a rather unfortunate image of being late, slow, dirty, confusing, and unsafe. Worse still, some of these adjectives are true. The shortage of bus drivers means that some routes remain poorly staffed, and bus wait times are long and far between. This results in people being willing to pay the increasingly absurd parking rates in Denver or take an Uber/similar rideshare, despite the prices of Ubers having increased by 92% between 2018 and 2021 according to Rakuten. 

However, it’s worth noting that Denver has been trying to improve the RTD experience. In August of 2022, Denver implemented the “Free Fare Month,” in which everybody could board and ride the RTD free of charge, in hopes of facilitating more rider usage. The RTD completed its 15L Improvement Project in October of 2021, which added bus shelters, security cameras, lighting, and benches to the stops along East Colfax Avenue. Right now, the RTD is working on adding another fleet of electric buses to its arsenal in 2023 after the Federal Transit Administration and the VW Settlement Program awarded the RTD $2.6 million and $8.5 million respectively. More information on these projects and other upcoming improvement projects can be found on the RTD website (rtd-denver.com). 

Most importantly though, the funding for these kinds of projects rides on the shoulders of the people. The more that the residents of Colorado demonstrate their support for public transportation, the more willing the government will be to allocate money for a better public transit experience. This simple act of demonstrating the willingness to ride the Denver RTD by everyday commuters could transform the experience of people who already need the RTD to survive. 

The longer that RTD Denver remains the middle class’s enigma, the longer that this city will fail its residents that rely on public transportation to go about their everyday lives.