One arbitrary Tuesday, I finished college. When I first enrolled as a freshman four years ago, I thought that completing my degree would a be met with a great deal of fanfare, that I would have a rush of exhilaration as the next stage of life. However, at 4:54pm I submitted my last college assignment, and suddenly I was done. After having spent twenty-one years of life in school, it was simply over. The fanfare would come, and of course there are still some ends to tie up, but for me college is over.

I simply cannot thank everyone at USAO enough, even to those that hardly know me. There is simply too much to say that would fit in this note, but nonetheless I’d like to try. The Trend has meant so much to me over the years, not in its status as a publication, but a place where my friends and I began to know each other. The bonds I have built with first Erin, then Harrison, and now Emily because of this small newspaper are life changing. But even beyond The Trend there are so many people I have met and so many lessons I have learned because I came to USAO. From professors like Dr. Casey and Dr. Simpson, to the many staff members I’ve had the privilege to call boss, and of course so many other students who have all built me up into the person who is now moving out of university life into the “real world.”

As the trimester comes to a close this week, for many this is the closing of what is a short, yet major, chapter of life. Congratulations to all who have found themselves here at the finish line! Don’t forget to enroll for the spring and be watching for The Trend as it once again passes to new leadership, under the firm hand of Emily Loughridge, who I believe is about to become the greatest Editor-in-chief that The Trend has seen in recent history.

Once again, thank you all for your continued support of The Trend, Emily, and I. Enjoy the upcoming break!

Daniel Buster is a fourth-year Communication major at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.